OM 


SWIFT 


CAPTMTY 


&PPLETON 


A.M.  r  NX  V- 

7  1  §  *Jt  ..>>  • v 

^   - 


University  of  California  •  Berkeley 

DONALD  SIDNEY-FRYER 
COLLECTION 


^vs     Q    lOUvT\"      U0^c3  , 


Tor 


THERE  WAS  A  RATTLING,  BANGING  NOISE,  AND  THE  BIG  PRO- 
PELLERS REVOLVED  WITH  INCREDIBLE  SWIFTNESS.  —  Page  209. 
Tom  Swift  in 


TOM    SWIFT    IN 
CAPTIVITY 

OR 
A  Daring  Escape  by  Airship 


BY 
VICTOR  APPLETON 

M«THOR  OF  "TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  MOTOR-CYCLE,"  **TOM  SWIFT  AJC: 

HIS  WIRELESS    MESSAGE,"       **TOM    SWIFT    IN    THE 

CITY    OF    GOLD,"       ETC. 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW  YORK 

UROSSET  &  DUNLAP 
PUBLISHERS 

Made  in  the  United  btates  of  America 


BOOKS  BY  VICTOR  APPLETON 
THE  TOM  SWIFT  SERIES 

TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  MOTOR-CYCLE 

Or  Fun  and  Adventures  on  the  Road 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  MOTOR-BOAT 

Or  The  Rivals  of  Lake  Carlopa 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  AIRSHIP 

Or  the  Stirring  Cruise  of  the  Red  Cloud 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  SUBMARINE  BOAT 

Or  Under  the  Ocean  for  Sunken  Treasure 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  ELECTRIC  RUNABOUT 

Or  the  Speediest  Car  on  the  Road 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  WIRELESS  MESSAGE 

Or  the  Castaways  of  Earthquake  Island 
TOM  SWIFT  AMONG  THE  DIAMOND  MAKERS 

Or  the  Secret  of  Phantom  Mountain 
TOM  SWIFT  IN  THE  CAVES  OF  ICE 

Or  the  Wreck  of  the  Airship 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  SKY  RACER 

Or  The  Quickest  Flight  on  Record 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  ELECTRIC  RIFLE 

Or  Daring  Adventures  in  Elephant  Land 
TOM  SWIFT  IN  THE  CITY  OF  GOLD 

Or  Marvelous  Adventures  Underground 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  AIR  GLIDER 

Or  Seeking  the  Platinum  Treasure 
TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

Or  A  Daring  Escape  by  Airship 

COther  Volumes  in  Preparation) 


GROSSET  &  DUNLAP 

PUBLISHERS  NEW  YORK. 

COP /RIGHT,  1912  BY 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP 


Tom  Swift  in  Captivity 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I    A  STRANGE  REQUEST I 

II    THE  CIRCUS  MAN II 

III  TOM  WILL  Go 20 

IV  <(!JOOK  OUT  FOR  MY  RIVAL  !" 28 

V    ANDY  FOGER  LEARNS  SOMETHING 37 

VI    ALARMING  NEWS 48 

VII    FIRE  ON  BOARD 57 

VIII    A  NARROW  ESCAPE 68 

IX    "FORWARD    MARCH!" 7* 

X    A  WILD  HORSE  STAMPEDE 85 

XI    CAUGHT  IN  A  LIVING  ROPE 94 

XII    A  NATIVE  BATTLE 105 

XIII  THE  DESERTION 113 

XIV  IN  GIANT  LAND 123 

XV    IN  THE  "PALACE"  OF  THE  KING 132 

XVI    THE  RIVAL  CIRCUS  MAN 142 

XVII    HELD    CAPTIVES 150 

XVIII    TOM'S  MYSTERIOUS  Box 158 

XIX    WEAK  GIANTS 165 

XX    THE  LONE  CAPTIVE 176 

Hi 


to  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXI  A  ROYAL  CONSPIRACY 185 

XXII  THE  TWIN  GIANTS 192 

XXIII  A  SURPRISE  IN  THE  NIGHT 197 

XXIV  THE  AIRSHIP  FLIGHT 202 

XXV  TOM'S   GIANT— CONCLUSION 210 


TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

CHAPTER    I 

A  STRANGE  REQUEST 

TOM  SWIFT  closed  the  book  of  adventures  he 
had  been  reading,  tossed  it  on  the  table,  and  got 
•up.  Then  he  yawned. 

"What's  the  matter?"  asked  his  chum,  Ned 
Newton,  who  was  deep  in  another  volume. 

"Oh,  I  thought  this  was  going  to  be  something 
exciting,"  replied  Tom,  motioning  toward  the 
book  he  had  discarded.  "But  say!  the  make-be- 
lieve adventures  that  fellow  had,  weren't  any- 
thing compared  to  those  we  went  through  in  the 
city  of  gold,  or  while  rescuing  the  exiles  of 
Siberia." 

"Well,"  remarked  Ned,  "they  would  have  to  be 
pretty  classy  adventures  to  lay  over  those  you 
and  I  have  had  lately.  But  where  are  you  go- 
ing?" he  continued,  for  Tom  had  taken  his  cap 
and  started  for  the  door. 


'g  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"I  thought  I'd  go  out  and  take  a  little  run  in 
the  aeroplane.  Want  to  come  along?  It's  more 
fut  than  sitting  in  the  house  reading  about  ex- 
citing things  that  never  have  happened.  Come 
on  out  and " 

"Yes,  and  have  a  tumble  from  the  aeroplane, 
I  suppose  you  were  going  to  say,"  interrupted 
Ned  with  a  laugh.  "Not  much!  I'm  going  to 
stay  here  and  finish  this  book." 

"Say,"  demanded  Tom  indignantly.  "Did  you 
ever  know  me  to  have  a  tumble  since  I  knew  how 
to  run  an  airship?" 

"No,  I  can't  say  that  I  did.    I  was  only  joking." 

"Then  you  carried  the  joke  too  far,  as  the 
policeman  said  to  the  man  he  found  lugging  off 
money  from  the  bank.  And  to  make  up  for  it 
you've  got  to  come  along  with  me." 

"Where  are  you  going?" 

"Oh,  anywhere.  Just  to  take  a  little  run  in  the 
upper  regions,  and  clear  some  of  the  cobwebs 
out  of  my  head.  I  declare,  I  guess  I've  got  the 
spring  fever.  I  haven't  done  anything  since  we 
got  back  from  Russia  last  fall,  and  I'm  getting 
rusty." 

"You  haven't  done  anything!"  exclaimed  Ned. 
following  his  chum's  example  by  tossing  aside  the 
book.  "Do  you  call  working  on  your  new  in- 
vention of  a  noiseless  airship  nothing?" 


A   STRANGE   REQUEST  3 

"Well,  I  haven't  finished  that  yet.  I'm  tired  of 
inventing  things.  I  just  want  to  go  off,  and  have 
some  good  fun,  like  getting  shipwrecked  on  a 
desert  island,  or  being  lost  in  the  mountains,  or 
something  like  that.  I  want  action.  I  want  to 
get  off  in  the  jungle,  and  fight  wild  beasts,  and 
escape  from  the  savages!" 

"Say!  you  don't  want  much,"  commented  Ned. 
"But  I  feel  the  same  way,  Tom." 

"Then  come  on  out  and  take  a  run,  and  maybe 
we'll  get  on  the  track  of  an  adventure,"  urged  the 
young  inventor.  "We  won't  go  far,  just  twenty 
or  thirty  miles  or  so." 

The  two  youths  emerged  from  the  house  and 
started  across  the  big  lawn  toward  the  aeroplane 
sheds,  for  Tom  Swift  owned  several  speedy  air- 
crafts,  from  a  big  combined  aeroplane  and  dirigi- 
ble balloon,  to  a  little  monoplane  not  much  larger 
than  a  big  bird,  but  which  was  the  most  rapid 
flier  that  ever  breathed  the  fumes  of  gasolene. 

"Which  one  you  going  to  take,  Tom?"  asked 
Ned,  as  his  chum  paused  in  front  of  the  row  of 
hangars. 

"Oh,  the  little  double-seated  monoplane,  I  guess 
that's  in  good  shape,  and  it's  easy  to  manage. 
When  I'm  out  for  fun  I  hate  to  be  tinkering  witK 
levers  and  warping  wing  tips  all  the  while.  The 
Lark  practically  flies  herself,  and  we  can  sit  bade 


4  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

and  take  it  easy.  I'll  have  Eradicate  fill  up  the 
gasolene  tank,  while  I  look  at  the  magneto.  It 
needs  a  little  adjusting,  though  it  works  nearly  to 
perfection  since  I  put  in  some  of  that  new  plat- 
inum we  got  from  the  lost  mine  in  Siberia." 

"Yes,  that  was  a  trip  that  amounted  to  some- 
thing. I  wouldn't  mind  going  on  another  like 
that,  though  we  ran  lots  of  risks." 

"We  sure  did,"  agreed  Tom,  and  then,  raising 
his  voice  he  called  out :  "Rad,  I  say  Rad !  Where 
are  you?  I  want  you!" 

"Comin',  massa  Tom,  comin',"  answered  an 
aged  colored  man,  as  he  shuffled  around  the  cor- 
ner of  the  shed.  "What  do  yo'-all  want  ob  me?" 

"Put  some  gasoline  in  the  Lark,  Rad.  Ned  and 
I  are  going  to  take  a  little  flight.  What  were 
you  doing?" 

"Jest  groomin'  mah  mule  Boomerang,  Massa 
Tom,  dat's  all.  Po'  Boomerang  he's  gittin'  old 
jest  same  laik  I  be.  He's  gittin'  old,  an'  he  needs 
lots  ob  'tention.  He  has  t'  hab  mo'  oats  dan  usual, 
Massa  Tom,  an'  he  doan't  feel  'em  laik  he  uster, 
dat's  a  fac',  Massa  Tom." 

"Well,  Rad,  give  him  all  he  wants.  Boomerang 
was  a  good  mule  in  his  day." 

"An'  he's  good  yet,  Massa  Tom,  he's  good 
yet!"  said  Eradicate  Sampson  eagerly.  "Doan't 
yo'  all  forgit  dat,  Massa  Tom."  And  the  colored 


A   STRANGE  REQUEST  5 

man  proceeded  to  fill  the  gasolene  tank,  while 
Tom  adjusted  the  electrical  mechanism  of  his 
aeroplane,  Ned  assisting  by  handing  him  the  tools 
needed.  Eradicate,  who  said  he  was  named  that 
because  he  "eradicated"  dirt,  was  a  colored  man 
of  all  work,  who  had  been  in  the  service  of  the 
Swift  household  for  several  years.  He  and  his 
mule  Boomerang  were  fixtures. 

"There,  I  guess  that  will  do,"  remarked  Torn, 
after  testing  the  magneto,  and  finding  that  it  gave 
a  fat,  hot  spark.  "That  ought  to  send  us  along  in 
good  shape.  Got  all  the  gas  in,  Rad?" 

"Every  drop,  Massa  Tom." 

"Then  catch  hold  and  help  wheel  the  Lark  out 
Ned,  you  steady  her  on  that  side.  How  are  the 
tires?  Do  they  need  pumping  up?" 

"Hard  as  rocks,"  answered  Tom's  chum,  as  he 
tapped  his  toe  against  the  rubber  circlets  of  the 
small  bicycle  wheels  on  which  the  aeroplane 
rested. 

"Then  they'll  do,  I  guess.  Come  on  now,  and 
we'll  give  her  a  test  before  we  start  off.  I 
ought  to  get  a  few  hundred  more  revolutions  per 
minute  out  of  the  motor  with  the  way  I've  ad- 
justed the  magneto.  Rad,  you  and  Ned  hold 
back,  while  I  turn  the  engine  over." 

The  youth  and  the  colored  man  grasped  the 
rear  supports  of  the  long,  tail-like  part  of  the 


6  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

monoplane  while  Tom  stepped  to  the  front  to 
twist  the  propeller  blades.  The  first  two  times 
there  was  no  explosion  as  he  swung  the  delicate 
wooden  blades  about,  but  the  third  time  the  en«- 
gine  started  off  with  a  roar,  and  a  succession  of 
explosions  that  were  deafening,  until  Tom 
switched  in  the  muffler,  thereby  cutting  down  the 
noise.  Faster  and  faster  the  propeller  whirled 
about  as  the  motor  warmed  up,  until  the  young 
inventor  exclaimed: 

"That's  the  stuff!  She's  better  than  ever! 
Climb  up  Ned,  and  we'll  start  off.  You  can  turn 
her  over,  Rad;  can't  you?" 

"Suah,  Massa  Tom,"  was  the  reply,  for  Eradi- 
cate had  been  on  so  many  trips  with  Tom,  and 
had  had  so  much  to  do  with  airships,  that  to 
merely  start  one  was  child's  play  for  him. 

The  two  youths  had  scarcely  taken  their  seats, 
and  the  colored  man  was  about  to  twist  around 
the  fan-like  blades  of  the  big  propeller  in  front, 
when  from  behind  there  came  a  hail. 

"Hold  on  there!  Wait  a  minute,  Tom  Swift! 
Bless  my  admission  ticket,  don't  go!  I've  got, 
something  important  to  tell  you!  Hold  on!" 

"Humph!  I  know  who  that  is!"  cried  Tom, 
motioning  to  Eradicate  to  cease  trying  to  star* 
the  motor. 


A  STRANGE  REQUEST  7 

"Mr.  Damon,  of  course,"  agreed  Ned.  "I  won- 
der what  he  wants?" 

"A  ride,  maybe,"  went  on  Tom.  "If  he 
does  we've  got  to  take  the  Scooter  instead  of  this 
one.  That  holds  four.  Well,  we  may  as  well 
see  what  he  wants." 

He  jumped  lightly  from  his  seat  in  the  mono- 
plane and  was  followed  by  Ned.  They  saw  com- 
ing toward  them,  from  the  direction  of  the  house, 
a  stout  man,  who  seemed  very  much  excited.  He 
was  walking  so  fast  that  he  fairly  waddled,  and 
he  was  smiling  at  the  lads,  for  he  was  one  of 
their  best  friends. 

"Glad  I  caught  you,  Tom,"  he  panted,  for  his 
haste  had  almost  deprived  him  of  breath.  "I've 
got  something  important  to  tell  you.  I  hurried 
over  as  soon  as  I  heard  about  it." 

"Well,  you're  just  in  time,"  commented  Ned 
with  a  laugh.  "In  another  minute  we'd  have 
been  up  in  the  clouds." 

"What  is  it,  Mr.  Damon?"  asked  Tom.  "Have 
you  got  wind  of  a  city  of  diamonds,  or  has  some 
one  sent  you  a  map  telling  where  we  can  go  to 
pick  up  ten  thousand  dollar  bills  by  the  basket?" 

"Neither  one;  Tom,  neither  one.  It's  some- 
thing better  than  either  of  those,  and  if  you  don't 
jump  at  the  chance  I'm  mistaken  in  you,  that's 
all  I've  got  to  say.  Come  over  here." 


8  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

He  turned  a  quick  glance  over  his  shoulder  as 
he  spoke  and  advanced  toward  the  two  lads  on 
tiptoe  as  though  he  feared  some  one  would  see 
or  hear  him.  Yet  it  was  broad  daylight,  the 
place  was  the  starting  ground  for  Tom's  aero- 
planes and  save  Eradicate  there  was  no  one  pres^ 
ent  except  Mr.  Damon,  Ned  and  the  young  in- 
ventor himself. 

"What's  up?"  asked  Tom  in  wonderment. 
"Hush!"  cautioned  the  odd  gentleman.    "Bless 
my  walking  stick,  Tom !  but  this  is  going  to  be  a 
great  chance  for  you — for  us, — for  I'm  going 
along. " 

"Going  where,  Mr.  Damon?" 
"I'll  tell  you  in  a  minute.     Is  there  any  one 
here?" 

"No  one  but  us?" 

"You  are  sure  that  Andy  Foger  isn't  around^" 
"Sure.  He's  out  of  town,  you  know." 
"Yes,  but  you  never  can  tell  when  he's  going 
to  appear  on  the  scene.     Come  over  here,"  and 
taking  hold  of  the  coat  of  each  of  the  youths, 
Mr.  Damon  led  them  behind  the  big  swinging 
door  of  the  aeroplane  shed. 

"You  haven't  anything  on  hand;  have  you, 
Tom?"  asked  the  odd  gentleman,  after  peering 
through  the  crack  to  make  sure  they  were  unob- 
served. 


A  STRANGE  REQUEST  9 

"Nothing  at  all,  if  you  mean  in  the  line  of  go- 
ing off  on  an  adventure  trip." 

"That's  what  I  mean.  Bless  my  ear  laps!  but 
l'*n  glad  of  that.  I've  got  just  the  thing  for  you. 
Tom,  I  want  you  to  go  to  a  strange  land,  and 
bring  back  one  of  the  biggest  men  there — a 
giant!  Tom  Swift,  you  and  I  and  Ned — if  he 
wants  to  go — are  going  after  a  giant!" 

Mr.  Damon  gleefully  clapped  Tom  on  the  back, 
with  such  vigor  that  our  hero  coughed,  and  then 
the  odd  gentleman  stepped  back  and  gazed  at  the 
two  lads,  a  look  of  triumph  shining  in  his  eyes. 

For  a  moment  there  was  a  silence.  Tom  looked 
at  Ned,  and  Ned  gave  his  chum  a  quick  glance. 
Then  they  both  looked  sharply  at  Mr.  Damon. 

"A — a  giant,"  murmured  Tom  faintly. 

"That's  what  I  said,"  replied  Mr.  Damon.  "I 
want  you  to  help  me  capture  a  giant,  Tom." 

Once  more  the  two  youths  exchanged  signifi- 
cant glances,  and  then  Tom,  in  a  low  and  gentle 
voice  said: 

"Yes,  Mr.  Damon,  that's  all  right.  We'll  get 
you  a  giant  right  away.  Won't  we,  Ned?  Now 
you'd  better  come  in  the  house  and  lie  down,  I'll 
have  Mrs.  Baggert  make  you  a  cup  of  tea,  and 
after  you  have  had  a  sleep  you'll  feel  better. 
Come  on,"  and  the  young  inventor  gently  tried 
to  lead  his  friend  out  from  behind  the  shed  door, 


10  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Look  here,  Tom  Swift!"  exclaimed  the  odd 
gentleman  indignantly.  "Do  you  think  I'm  crazy? 
Lie  down?  Rest  myself?  Go  to  sleep?  Say, 
I'm  not  crazy!  I'm  not  tired!  I'm  not  sleepy! 
This  is  the  greatest  chance  you  ever  had,  and  if 
we  get  one  of  those  giants " 

"Yes,  yes,  we'll  get  one,"  put  in  Ned  sooth* 
ingly. 

"Of  course,"  added  Tom.  "Come  on,  now, 
Mr.  Damon.  You'll  feel  better  after  you've  hatf 
a  rest.  Dr.  Perkinby  is  coming  over  to  see  father 
and  I'll  have  him " 

Mr.  Damon  gave  one  startled  glance  at  the 
young  inventor  and  his  chum,  and  then  burst  into 
a  peal  of  hearty  laughter. 

"Oh,  my!"  he  exclaimed  at  intervals  in  his 
pyroxisms.  "Oh,  dear!  He  thinks  I'm  out  of 
my  head !  He  can't  stand  that  talk  about  giants ! 
Oh  dear!  Tom  Swift,  this  is  the  greatest  chance 
you  ever  had !  Come  on  in  the  house  and  I'll  tell 
you  all  I  know  about  giant  land,  and  then  if  you 
want  to  think  I'  crazy  you  can,  that's  all  I've  got 
to  say!" 


CHAPTER   II 

THE  CIRCUS  MAN 

WITHOUT  a  word  Tom  and  Ned  followed  Mr. 
Damon  toward  the  Swift  house.  Truth  to  tell 
the  youths  did  not  know  what  to  say,  or  they 
would  have  been  bubbling  over  with  questions. 
But  the  talk  of  the  odd  man,  and  his  strange  re- 
quest to  Tom  to  go  off  and  capture  a  giant  had 
so  startled  the  young  inventor  and  his  chum  that 
they  did  not  know  whether  to  think  that  Mr. 
Damon  was  joking,  or  whether  he  had  suddenly 
taken  leave  of  his  senses. 

And  while  I  have  a  few  minutes  that  are  oc- 
cupied in  the  journey  to  the  house  I  will  intro- 
duce my  new  readers  more  formally  to  Tom 
Swift  and  his  friends. 

Tom  though  only  a  young  man,  was  an  in- 
ventor of  note,  as  his  father  was  before  him. 
Father  and  son  lived  in  a  fine  house  in  the  town  of 
Shopton,  in  New  York  state,  and  Mrs.  Swift 
being  dead,  the  two  were  well  looked  after  by 
Mrs.  Baggert  their  housekeeper.  Eradicate  Samp- 


12  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

son,  as  I  have  said,  was  the  man  of  all  work 
about  the  place.  Ned  Newton  who  had  a  position 
in  a  Shopton  bank,  was  Tom's  particular  chum, 
and  Mr.  Wakefield  Damon,  of  the  neighboring 
town  of  Waterfield,  was  a  friend  to  all  who  knew 
him.  He  had  the  odd  habit  of  blessing  anything 
and  everything  he  could  think  of,  interspersing  it 
in  his  talk. 

In  the  first  volume  of  this  series,  called  "Tom 
Swift  and  His  Motor-Cycle,"  I  related  how  Tom 
made  the  acquaintance  of  Mr.  Damon,  afterward 
purchasing  a  damaged  motor-cycle  from  the  odd 
gentleman.  On  this  machine  Tom  had  many  ad- 
ventures, incidentally  saving  some  of  his  father's 
valuable  patents  from  a  gang  of  conspirators. 
Later  Tom  got  a  motor  boat,  and  had  many  races 
with  his  rivals  on  Lake  Carlopa,  beating  Andy 
Foger,  the  red-haired  bully  of  the  town,  in  signal 
fashion.  After  his  adventures  on  the  water  Tom 
sighed  for  some  in  the  air,  and  he  had  them  in 
his  airship  the  Red  Cloud. 

"Tom  Swift  and  His  Submarine  Boat,"  is  a 
story  of  a  search  after  sunken  treasure,  and,  re- 
turning from  that  quest  Tom  built  an  electric 
runabout,  the  speedest  car  on  the  road.  By  means 
of  a  wireless  message,  later,  Tom  was  able  to 
save  himself  and  the  castaways  of  Earthquake 
Island,  and,  as  a  direct  outcome  of  that  experi- 


THE  CIRCUS  MAN  13 

ence,  he  was  able  to  go  in  search  of  the  diamond 
makers,  and  solve  the  secret  of  Phantom  Moun- 
tain, as  told  in  the  book  dealing  with  that  subject 

When  he  went  to  the  caves  of  ice  Tom  had 
bad  luck,  for  his  airship  was  wrecked,  and  he  en- 
dured many  hardships  in  getting  home  with  his 
companions,  particularly  as  Andy  Foger  sought 
revenge  on  him. 

But  Tom  pluckily  overcame  all  obstacles  and, 
later,  he  built  a  sky  racer,  in  which  he  made  the 
quickest  trip  on  record.  After  that,  with  his 
electric  rifle,  he  went  after  elephants  in  the  in- 
terior of  Africa  and  was  successful  in  rescuing 
some  missionaries  from  the  terrible  red  pygmies 

One  of  the  mission  workers,  later,  sent  Tom 
details  about  a  buried  city  of  gold  in  Mexico,  and 
Tom  and  his  chum  together  with  Mr.  Damon, 
located  this  mysterious  place  after  much  trouble, 
as  told  in  the  book  entitled,  "Tom  Swift  in  the 
Citv  of  Gold."  The  gold  did  not  prove  as  valu- 
able as  they  expected,  as  it  was  of  low  grade,  but 
they  got  considerable  money  for  it,  and  were 
then  ready  for  more  adventures. 

The  adventures  soon  came,  as  those  of  you  who 
have  read  the  book  called,  "Tom  Swift  and  His 
Air  Glider,"  can  testify.  In  that  I  told  how  Tom 
went  to  Siberia,  and  after  rescuing  some  Rus- 
sian political  exiles,  found  a  valuable  deposit  of 


I4  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

platinum,  which  to-day  is  a  more  valuable  metal 
than  gold.  Tom  needed  some  platinum  for  his 
electrical  machines,  and  it  proved  very  useful. 

He  had  been  back  from  Russia  all  winter  and, 
now  that  Spring  had  come  again,  our  hero  sighed 
for  more  activity,  and  fresh  adventures.  And 
with  the  advent  of  Mr.  Damon,  and  his  myste- 
rious talk  about  giants,  Tom  seemed  likely  to  be 
gratified. 

The  two  chums  and  the  odd  gentleman  con- 
tinued on  to  the  house,  no  one  speaking,  until 
finally,  when  they  were  seated  in  the  library,  Mr. 
Damon  said: 

"Well,  Tom,  are  you  ready  to  listen  to  me  now, 
and  have  me  explain  what  I  meant  when  I  asked 
you  to  get  a  giant  ?" 

"I — I  suppose  so,"  hesitated  the  young  inven- 
tor. "But  hadn't  I  better  call  dad?  And  are 
you  sure  you  don't  want  to  lie  down  and  collect 
your  thoughts  ?  A  nice  hot  cup  of  tea " 

"There,  there,  Tom  Swift;  If  you  tell  me  to 
lie  down  again,  or  propose  any  more  tea  I'll  use 
you  as  a  punching  bag,  bless  my  boxing  gloves 
if  I  don't!"  cried  Mr.  Damon  and  he  laughed 
heartily.  "I  know  what  you  think,  Tom,  and  you, 
too,  Ned,"  he  went  on,  still  chuckling.  "You 
think  I  don't  know  what  I'm  saying,  but  I'll 
soon  prove  that  I  do.  I'm  fully  in  my  senses, 


THE  CIRCUS  MAN  15 

I'm  not  crazy,  I'm  not  talking  in  my  sleep,  and 
I'm  very  much  in  earnest.  Tom,  this  is  the 
chance  of  your  life  to  get  a  giant,  and  pay  a 
visit  to  giant  land.  Will  you  take  it?" 

"Mr.  Damon,  I — er— that  is  I " 

Tom  stammered  and  looked  at  Ned. 

"Now  look  here,  Tom  Swift!"  exclaimed  the 
odd  man.  "When  you  got  word  about  the  buried 
city  of  gold  in  Mexico  you  didn't  hesitate  a  min- 
ute about  making  up  your  mind  to  go  there;  did 
you?" 

"No,  I  didn't." 

"Well,  that  wasn't  any  more  of  a  strain  on 
your  imagination  than  this  giant  business;  was 
it?" 

"Well,  I  don't  know,  as " 

"Bless  my  spectacles!  Of  course  it  wasn't! 
Now,  look  here.  Tom,  you  just  make  up  your 
mind  that  I  know  what  I'm  talking  about,  and 
we'll  get  along  better.  I  don't  blame  you  for 
being  a  bit  puzzled  at  first,  but  just  you  listen. 
You  believe  there  are  such  things  as  giants ;  don't 
you?" 

"I  saw  a  man  in  the  circus  once,  seven  feet 
high.  They  called  him  a  giant,"  spoke  Ned. 

"A  giant!  He  was  a  baby  compared  to  the 
kind  of  giants  I  mean,"  said  Mr.  Damon  quickly. 
"Tom,  we  are  going  after  a  race  of  giants,  the 


16  TOM  SWIFi   IN  CAPTIVITY 

smallest  one  of  which  is  probably  eight  feet  high, 
and  from  that  they  go  on  up  to  nearly  ten  feet, 
and  they're  not  slim  fellows  either,  but  big  in 
proportion.  Now  in  giant  land " 

"Here's  Mrs.  Baggert  with  a  quieting  cup  of 
tea,"  interrupted  Tom.  "I  spoke  to  her  as  we 
came  in,  and  asked  her  to  have  some  ready.  If 
you'll  drink  this,  Mr.  Damon,  I'm  sure " 

"Bless  my  sugar  bowl,  Tom!  You  make  a 
man  nervous,  with  your  cups  of  tea.  I'm  more 
quiet  than  you,  but  I'll  drink  it  to  please  you. 
Now  listen  to  me." 

"All  right,  go  ahead." 

"A  friend  of  mine  has  asked  me  if  I  knew  any 
one  who  could  undertake  to  go  to  giant  land,  and 
get  him  one  or  two  specimens  of  the  big  mea 
there.  I  at  once  thought  of  you,  and  I  said  I  be- 
lieved you  would  go.  And  I'll  go  with  you,  Tom! 
Think  of  that!  I've  got  faith  enough  in  the 
proposition  to  go  myself!" 

There  was  no  mistaking  Mr.  Damon's  manner. 
He  was  very  much  in  earnest,  and  Tom  and  Ned 
looked  at  each  other  with  a  different  light  in  their 
eyes. 

"Who  is  your  friend,  and  where  in  the  world  is 
giant  land?"  asked  Tom.  "I  haven't  heard  of 
such  a  place  since  I  read  the  accounts  of  the  early 


THE  CIRCUS  MAN  17 

travelers,  before  this  continent  was  discovered. 
Who  is  your  friend  that  wants  a  giant?" 

"If  you'll  let  me,  I'll  have  him  here  in  a  minute, 
Tom." 

"Of  course  I  will.  But  good  land!  Have  you 
got  him  concealed  up  your  sleeve,  or  under  some 
of  the  chairs?  Is  he  a  dwarf?"  and  Tom  looked 
about  the  room  as  if  he  expected  to  see  some  one 
in  hiding. 

"I  left  him  outside  in  the  garden,  Tom,"  re- 
plied the  odd  man.  "I  told  him  I'd  come  on 
ahead,  and  see  how  you  took  the  proposition. 
Don't  tell  him  you  thought  me  insane  at  first. 
I'll  have  him  here  in  a  jiffy.  I'll  signal  to  him." 

Not  waiting  for  a  word  from  either  of  the 
boys,  Mr.  Damon  went  to  one  of  the  low  library 
windows,  opened  it,  gave  a  shrill  whistle  and 
waved  his  handkerchief  vigorously.  In  a  mo- 
ment there  came  an  answering  whistle. 

"He's  coming,"  announced  the  odd  gentleman. 

"But  who  is  he?"  insisted  Tom.  "Is  he  some 
professor  who  wants  a  giant  to  examine,  or  is  he 
a  millionaire  who  wants  one  for  a  body  guard?" 

"Neither  one,  Tom.  He's  the  proprietor  of  a 
number  of  circuses,  and  a  string  of  museums, 
and  he  wants  a  giant,  or  even  two  of  them,  for 
exhibition  purposes.  There's  lots  of  money  in 
giants.  He's  had  some  seven,  and  even  eight  feet 


18  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

tall,  but  he  has  lately  heard  of  a  land  where  trie 
tallest  man  is  nearly  ten  feet  high,  and  very  big, 
and  he'll  pay  ten  thousand  dollars  for  a  giant 
alive  and  in  good  condition,  as  the  animal  men 
say.  I  believe  we  can  get  one  for  him,  and — Ah, 
here  he  is  now,"  and  Mr.  Damon  interrupted 
himself  as  a  small,  dark-complexioned  man,  with 
a  very  black  mustache,  black  eyes,  a  watch  chain 
as  big  around  as  his  thumb,  a  red  vest,  a  large 
white  hat,  and  a  suit  of  large-sized  checked 
clothes  appeared  at  the  open  library  window. 

"Is  it  all  right?"  this  strange-appearing  man 
asked  of  Mr.  Damon. 

"I  believe  so,"  replied  the  odd  gentleman. 
"Come  in,  Sam." 

With  one  bound,  though  the  window  was  some 
distance  from  the  ground,  the  little  man  leaped 
into  the  library.  He  landed  lightly  on  his  feet, 
quickly  turned  two  hand  springs  in  rapid  succes- 
sion, and  then,  without  breathing  in  the  least 
rapidly,  as  most  men  would  have  done  after  that 
exertion,  he  made  a  low  bow  to  Tom  and  Ned. 

"Boys,  let  me  introduce  you  to  my  friend,  Sam 
Preston,  an  old  acrobat  and  now  a  circus  proprie- 
tor," said  Mr.  Damon.  "Mr.  Preston,  this  is 
Tom  Swift,  of  whom  I  told  you,  and  his  chum* 
Ned  Newton." 


THE  CIRCUS  MAN  19 

"And  will  they  get  the  giant  for  me?"  asked 
the  circus  man  quickly. 

"I  think  they  will,"  replied  Mr.  Damon.  "I 
had  a  little  difficulty  in  making  the  matter  clear 
to  them,  and  that's  why  I  sent  for  you.  You  can 
explain  everything." 

"Have  a  chair,"  invited  Tom  politely.  "This 
is  a  new  one  on  me — going  after  giants.  I've 
done  almost  everything  else,  though." 

"So  Mr.  Damon  said,"  spoke  Mr.  Preston 
gravely.  He  was  much  more  sedate  and  com- 
posed than  one  would  have  supposed  after  his 
sensational  entrance  into  the  room.  "I  am  very 
glad  to  meet  you,  Tom  Swift,  and  I  hope  we  can 
do  business  together.  Now,  if  you  have  a  few 
minutes  to  spare,  I'll  tell  you  all  I  know  about 


CHAPTER  III 

V 

TOM  WILL  GO 

"JOVE!  That  sounds  interesting!"  exclaimed 
Ned,  as  he  settled  himself  comfortably  in  his 
chair. 

"It  is  interesting,"  replied  the  circus  man.  "At 
least  I  found  it  so  when  I  first  listened  to  one  of 
my  men  tell  it.  But  whether  it  is  possible  to  get  to 
giant  land,  and,  what  is  more  bring  away  some 
of  the  big  men,  is  something  I  leave  to  you,  Tom 
Swift.  After  you  have  heard  my  story,  if  you 
decide  to  go,  I'll  stand  all  the  expenses  of  fitting 
out  an  expedition,  and  if  you  fail  I  won't  have  a 
word  to  say.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  you  bring  me 
back  a  giant  or  two,  I'll  pay  you  ten  thousand 
dollars  and  all  expenses.  Is  it  a  bargain?" 

"Let  me  hear  the  story  first,"  suggested  our 
hero,  who  was  a  cautious  lad  when  there  was  need 
for  it.  Yet  he  liked  Mr.  Preston,  even  at  first 
sight,  in  spite  of  his  "loud"  attire,  and  the  rather 
"circusy"  manner  in  which  he  had  entered  the 

2Q 


TOM  WILL  GO  21 

room.  Then  too,  if  he  was  a  friend  of  Mr. 
Damon,  that  was  a  great  deal  in  his  favor. 

"I  am,  as  you  know,  in  the  circus  business,** 
began  Mr.  Preston.  "I  have  a  number  of  travel- 
ing shows,  and  several  large  museums  in  the  big 
cities.  I  am  always  on  the  lookout  for  new  at- 
tractions, for  the  public  demands  them.  Once 
get  in  the  rut  of  having  nothing  new,  and  your 
business  will  fall  off.  I  know,  for  I've  been  in 
the  business,  man  and  boy,  for  nearly  forty 
years.  I  began  as  a  performer,  and  I  can  still 
do  a  double  somersault  over  fifteen  elephants  in 
a  row.  I  always  keep  in  practice  for  there's 
nothing  like  showing  a  performer  how  to  do  a 
thing  yourself. 

"But  about  the  giants,  which  is  what  I'm  inter- 
ested  in  most  now.  Of  course  I've  had  giants  in 
my  circuses  and  museums,  from  the  beginning. 
The  public  wanted  'em  and  we  had  to  have  'em. 
Some  of  'em  were  fakes — men  on  stilts  with  long 
pants  to  cover  up  their  legs,  and  others  were  the 
real,  genuine,  all-wool-and-a-yard-wide  article. 
But  none  of  them  were  very  big.  A  shade  under 
eight  feet  was  the  limit  with  me. 

"I  also  have  lots  of  wild  animals,  and  it  was 
when  some  of  my  men  were  out  after  some  tapirs, 
jaguars  and  leopards  that  I  got  on  the  track  of  the 
giants.  It  was  about  a  year  ago,  but  up  to  this 


22  TOM  SWIPt  IN  CAPTIVITY 

time  I  haven't  seen  my  way  clear  to  send  af  te? 
the  big  men.  It  was  this  way :" 

Mr.  Preston  assumed  a  more  comfortable  po 
sition  in  his  chair,  nodded  at  Mr.  Damon,  who 
was  listening  attentively  to  all  that  was  said,  and 
resumed. 

"As  I  said  I  had  sent  Jake  Poddington,  one  of 
my  best  men,  after  tapirs  and  some  other  South 
American  animals.  He  didn't  have  very  good 
luck  hunting  along  the  Amazon.  In  the  first 
place  that  region  has  been  pretty  well  cleaned  out 
of  circus  animals,  and  another  thing  it's  getting 
too  well  populated.  Another  thing  is  that  you 
can't  get  the  native  hunters  and  beaters  to  work 
for  you  as  they  did  years  ago. 

"So  Poddington  wrote  to  me  that  he  was  going 
to  take  his  assistants,  make  a  big  jump,  and  hike 
it  for  the  Argentine  Republic.  He  had  a  tip  that 
along  the  Salado  river  there  might  be  something 
doing,  and  I  told  him  to  go  ahead. 

"He  shipped  me  what  few  animals  he  had,  and 
lit  out  for  a  three  thousand  mile  journey.  I 
didn't  hear  from  him  for  some  time,  and,  when 
I  did,  I  got  the  finest  collection  of  animals  I  had 
ever  laid  eyes  on.  I  got  them  about  the  same 
time  I  did  a  letter  from  Jake,  for  the  mail  serv- 
ice ain't  what  you  could  call  rushing  in  that  part 
of  South  America." 


TOM  WILL  GO  23 

"But  what  about  the  giants?"  interrupted  Mr. 
Damon. 

"I'm  coming  to  them,"  replied  the  circus  man 
calmly.  "It  was  this  way:  At  the  tail  of  his 
letter  which  he  sent  with  the  shipment  of  ani- 
mals Jake  said  this,  and  I  remember  it  almost 
word  for  word : 

"  'If  all  goes  well,'  he  wrote.  'I'll  have  a  big 
surprise  for  you  soon.  I've  heard  a  story  about 
a  race  of  big  natives  that  have  their  stamping 
ground  in  this  section,  and  I'm  going  to  try  for 
a  few  specimens.  I  know  how  much  you  want 
a  giant.'  " 

"Well?"  asked  Tom,  after  a  pause,  for  the 
circus  man  had  ceased  talking  and  was  staring 
out  of  the  opened  library  window  into  the  garden 
that  was  just  becoming  green. 

"That  was  all  I  ever  heard  from  poor  Jake," 
said  Mr.  Preston  softly. 

"Bless  my  insurance  policy!"  gasped  Mr.  Dam- 
on. "You  didn't  tell  me  that!  What  happened 
to  him." 

"I  never  could  find  out,"  resumed  Mr.  Preston. 
"I  never  heard  another  word  from  him,  and  I've 
never  seen  him  from  the  time  I  parted  with  him 
to  go  after  the  animals.  The  letter  saying  he 
was  going  after  the  giants  was  the  last  line  of 
his  I've  seen." 


24  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"But  didn't  you  try  to  locate  him?"  asked  Tom 
"Didn't  he  have  some  companions — some  one  who 
could  tell  what  became  of  him?" 

"Of  course  I  tried!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Prestoa 
"Do  you  think  I'd  let  a  man  like  Jake  disappear 
without  making  some  effort  to  find  him?  But  he 
was  the  only  white  man  in  his  party,  the  rest 
were  natives.  That  was  Jake's  way.  Well,  when 
some  time  past  and  I  didn't  hear  from  him,  I  got 
busy.  I  wrote  to  our  consuls  and  even  some 
South  American  merchants  with  whom  I  had 
done  business.  But  it  didn't  amount  to  anything." 

"Couldn't  you  get  any  news?"  asked  Ned 
softly. 

"Oh,  yes,  some,  but  it  didn't  amount  to  much. 
After  a  long  time,  and  no  end  of  trouble,  I  had 
a  man  locate  a  native  named  Zacatas,  who  was 
the  head  beater  of  the  black  men  under  Jake. 

"Zacatas  said  that  he  and  Jake  and  the  others 
got  safely  to  the  Salado  river  section,  but  I  knew 
that  before,  for  that  was  where  the  fine  shipment 
of  animals  came  from.  Then  Jake  got  that  tip 
about  the  giants,  and  set  off  alone  into  the  interi- 
or to  locate  them,  for  all  the  natives  were  afraid 
to  go.  That  was  the  last  seen  of  poor  Jake." 

"Bless  my  fire  shovel!"  cried  Mr.  Damonc 
"What  did  Zacatas  say  became  of  the  poor 
fellow?" 


TOM.  WILL  GO  25 

"No  one  knew.  Whether  he  reached  giant 
land  and  was  killed  there,  or  whether  he  was 
struck  down  by  some  wild  beast  in  the  jungle, 
I  never  could  find  out.  The  natives  under  Zacatas 
waited  in  camp  for  him  for  some  time,  and  then 
went  back  to  the  Amazon  region  where  they  be- 
longed. That's  all  the  news  I  could  get. 

"But  I'm  sure  there  are  giants  in  the  interior 
of  South  America,  for  Jake  always  knew  what  he 
was  talking  about.  Now  I  want  to  do  two  things, 
I  want  to  get  on  the  trail  of  poor  Jake  Podding- 
ton  if  I  can  ,and  I  want  a  giant — two  or  three  of 
them  if  it  can  be  managed 

"Ever  since  Jake  disappeared  I've  been  trying 
to  arrange  things  to  make  a  search  for  him,  and 
for  the  giants,  but  up  to  now  something  has  been 
in  the  way.  I  happened  to  mention  the  matter 
to  my  friend,  Mr.  Damon,  and  he  at  once  spoke 
of  you,  Tom  Swift. 

"Now,  what  I  want  to  know  is  this :  Will  you 
undertake  to  get  a  giant  for  me,  rescue  Jake  Pod- 
dington  if  he  is  alive  in  the  interior  of  South 
America,  or,  if  he  is  dead,  find  out  how  it  hap- 
pened and  give  him  decent  burial?  Witt  you  do 
this,  Tom  Swift?" 

There  was  a  silence  in  the  room  following  the 
Dramatic  and  simple  recital  of  the  circus  man. 
Tom  was  strangely  moved,  as  was  his  chum  Ned, 


26  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

As  for  Mr.  Damon,  he  was  softly  blessing  every 
thing  he  could  think  of. 

Tom  looked  out  of  the  long,  opened  windows 
of  the  library.  In  fancy  he  could  see  the  forest 
and  jungles  of  South  America.  He  saw  a  slug- 
gish river  flowing  along  between  rank  green 
banks,  while,  from  the  overhanging  trees,  long 
festoons  of  moss  hung  down,  writhing  now  ancj 
then  as  the  big  water  anacondas  or  boa  constric* 
tors  looped  their  sinuous  folds  over  the  low  limbs, 

In  fancy  he  saw  dark-skinned  natives  slinking 
along  with  their  deadly  blow  guns,  and  poisoned 
arrows.  He  thought  he  could  hear  the  low  growls 
and  whines  of  the  treacherous  jaguars  and  see 
their  lithe  bodies  slinking  along.  He  saw  the 
brilliant-hued  flowers,  saw  the  birds  of  gorgeous 
plumage,  and  listened  in  fancy  to  their  discordant 
cries. 

Then,  too,  he  saw  a  lonely  white  man  in  a 
miserable  native  hut  thousands  of  miles  from  civ- 
ilization, waiting,  waiting,  waiting  for  he  knew 
not  what  fate.  Again  he  saw  monstrous  men 
stalking  along — men  who  towered  ten  feet  or 
more,  and  who  were  big  and  brawny.  All  this 
passed  through  the  mind  of  Tom  in  an  instant. 

"Well?"  asked  Mr.  Preston  softly. 

"I'll  go!"  suddenly  cried  the  young  inventor. 
"I  don't  know  whether  I  can  get  you  a  giant  oar 


TOM  WILL  GO  27 

not,  Mr.  Preston,  but  if  it's  possible  I'll  get  poor 
Jake  Poddington,  dead  or  alive!" 

"Good!"  cried  the  circus  man,  jumping  up  and 
clasping  Tom's  hand.  "I  thought  you  were  that 
kind  of  a  lad,  after  I  heard  Mr.  Damon  describe 
you.  You've  taken  a  big  load  off  my  heart,  Tom 
Swift.  Now  to  talk  of  ways  and  means!  I'll 
have  a  giant  yet,  and  maybe  I'll  get  back  the  best 
man  who  ever  shipped  a  consignment  of  wild 
animals,  good  Jake  Poddington!  Now  to  busi- 
ness p 


CHAPTER  IV 
"LOOK  OUT  FOR  MY  RIVAL!" 

"YOU'LL  go  in  an  airship  of  course ;  won't 
Tom?"  asked  Mr.  Damon,  when  they  had  pulled 
their  chairs  up  around  a  library  table,  and  Mr. 
Preston  had  taken  some  papers  from  his  pocket. 

"An  airship?  No,  I  don't  believe  I  shall,"  re- 
plied the  young  inventor.  "In  the  first  place,  I'm 
a  bit  tired  of  scooting  through  the  air  so  much, 
though  it  isn't  to  be  denied  that  it's  the  quickest 
way  of  going.  But  in  South  America  there  are 
so  many  jungles  that  it  will  be  hard  to  find  a  level 
starting  ground  for  a  take-off,  after  we  land.  Of 
course  we  could  go  up  as  a  balloon,  but  this  ex- 
pedition is  going  to  be  different  from  any  we  were 
ever  on  before." 

"How  so?"  asked  Ned. 

"Well,  in  the  first  place  we've  got  to  start  at 
one  end  of  a  trail,  and  make  careful  inquiries 
all  along  the  way.  It  isn't  like  when  we  went 
for  the  city  of  gold.  There  we  had  to  look  for 
a  certain  ruined  temple,  which  was  the  landmark 

28 


"LOOK  OUT  FOR  MY  RIVAL!"  29 

When  we  went  after  the  platinum  in  Siberia  we 
had  to  look  for  the  place  of  the  high  winds,  so 
I  could  use  my  air  glider.  But  now  we're  trying 
to  locate  a  man  who  traveled  on  foot  through  the 
jungles,  and  if  we  went  in  an  airship  we  might 
just  miss  the  connecting  link. 

"So,  I  think  the  best  way  will  be  to  do  just  as 
Mr.  Poddington  did — travel  on  foot  or  by  horses 
and  mules,  and  go  slowly,  making  inquiries  from 
time  to  time.  Then  we  may  get  to  giant  land, 
we  may  find  him." 

"I  don't  hope  for  all  that,"  said  the  circus  man, 
"but  if  you  can  only  get  some  news  of  him  it  wiH 
be  a  relief.  If  he  died  peaceably  it  would  be 
better  than  to  be  a  captive  among  some  of  those 
savage  tribes.  It's  been  a  year  now  since  I 
heard  the  last  of  him.  But  I  agree  with  Tom  that 
an  airship  won't  be  much  good  in  the  jungle. 
You  might  take  along  a  small  one,  if  you  could 
pack  it,  to  scare  the  natives  with.  In  fact  it 
might  be  a  good  thing  to  show  to  the  giants,  if 
you  find  them." 

"That  is  my  idea,"  declared  Tom.  "I'll  take 
the  Lark  with  me.  "That's  a  mighty  powerful 
machine  for  its  size,  and  it  can  be  taken  apart  in 
sections.  It  will  carry  three  on  a  pinch,  and  I 
have  had  five  in  her  with  two  auxiliary  seats.  I'll 
the  Lark,  and  she  may  come  in  handy.* 


30  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"When  can  you  start?"  asked  Mr.  Preston. 

"As  soon  as  we  can  fit  out  an  expedition, * 
answered  Tom.  "It  oughtn't  to  take  long.  I 
don't  have  to  build  an  air  glider  this  time.  It 
won't  take  long  to  take  the  Lark  apart.  I  haven't 
finished  work  on  my  noisless  airship  yet,  but  that 
can  wait.  Yes,  we'll  be  ready  as  soon  as  you 
want  us  to  start,  Mr.  Preston." 

"It  can't  be  too  soon  for  me.  I'll  deposit  a 
certain  sum  in  the  bank  to  your  credit,  Tom,  and 
you  can  draw  on  it  for  expenses.  Til  pay  any 
amount  to  get  word  of  poor  Jake,  to  say  nothing 
of  having  a  giant  for  my  circus.  Now  as  to  ways 
of  getting  there.  Have  you  a  large  map  of  South 
America?" 

Tom  had  one,  and  he  and  the  others  were  pour- 
ing over  it  when  Tom's  father  came  into  the 
room. 

"Well,  well!"  he  exclaimed.  "What's  this? 
What  are  you  up  to  now,  Tom,  my>  boy?  Mrs. 
Baggert  said  you  took  down  the  South  American 
map.  What's  up?" 

"Lots,  dad  ?    I'm  going  after  giants  this  time ! " 

"Giants,  Tom?    Are  you  joking?" 

"Not  a  bit  of  it,  Mr.  Swift,"  answered  Mr. 
Damon.  "Bless  my  check  book!  I  believe  if 
some  one  wanted  the  moon  Tom  Swift  would  try 
to  get  it  for  them." 


"LOOK  OUT  FOR  MY  RIVAL!"  31 

Then  Mr.  Swift  noticed  the  stranger  present, 
and  was  introduced  to  the  circus  man. 

"Is  it  really  true,  Tom,"  asked  the  aged  in- 
ventor, when  the  story  had  been  related,  "are 
you  going  to  have  a  try  for  giant  land  ?"  » 

"That's  what  I  am,  dad,  and  I  wish  you  were 
going  along." 

"No,  Tom,  I'm  getting  too  old  for  that.  But 
I  did  hope  you'd  stay  home  for  a  while,  and  help 
me  work  on  my  gyroscope  invention.  It  is  al- 
most completed." 

"I  will  help  you,  dad,  as  soon  as  I  get  back 
with  a  giant  or  two.  Who  knows?  maybe  Ftt 
get  one  myself." 

"What  would  you  do  with  one?"  asked  Ned 
with  a  laugh. 

"Have  him  help  Eradicate,"  answered  the 
young  inventor.  "Rad  is  getting  pretty  old,  and 
he  needs  an  assistant." 

"But  are  these  giants  black?"  asked  Mr.  Swift 

"That's  a  point  I  don't  know,"  answered  the* 
circus  man  frankly.  "Jake  didn't  say  in  his  let" 
ten  They  may  be  black,  white  or  midway  be* 
tween.  That's  what  Tom  has  got  to  find  out  fotf 
us." 

"And  I'll  do  it!"  exclaimed  our  hero.  "Now 
let's  see.  I  suppose  the  best  plan  would  be  to 
take  a  ship  right  to  the  Rio  de  la  Plata,  landing 


32  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

say  at  Buenos  Ayres  or  Montevideo,  and  then 
organize  an  expedition  to  strike  into  the  interior." 

"Why  don't  you  do  just  as  Mr.  Poddington 
did?"  asked  Ned,  "start  from  the  Amazon  and 
work  south?" 

"It  would  take  too  long,"  declared  Tom.  "We 
know  that  the  giants  are  somewhere  in  the  north- 
ern part  of  Argentina,  or  in  Paraguay  or  Uru- 
guay. Or  they  may  be  on  the  other  side  of  the 
Uruguay  river  in  Brazil.  It's  quite  a  stretch  of 
territory,  and  we've  got  to  take  our  time  explor- 
ing it.  That's  why  I  don't  want  to  waste  time 
working  down  from  the  Amazon,  We'll  go  right 
to  Buenos  Ayres,  I  think." 

"That's  what  I'd  do,"  advised  the  old  circus 
man.  "Now  I  can  give  you  some  points  on  what 
to  take,  and  how  to  act  when  you  get  there.  The 
South  Americans  are  a  queer  people — very  nice 
when  treated  right,  but  very  bad  if  not,"  and  then 
he  told  some  of  his  experiences  as  a  circus  man 
in  South  America,  for  he  had  traveled  there. 

"I'd  go  again,  if  my  business  didn't  keep  me 
here,"  he  concluded,  "for  I'd  ask  nothing  better 
than  to  hunt  for  giant  land,  or  try  to  rescue  poor 
Jake.  But  I  can't.  I'm  depending  on  you,  Ton? 
Swift 

"What's  that?  Giant  land?"  exclaimed  Mrs, 
Baggert,  the  motherly  housekeeper,  as  she  cams 


"LOOK  OUT  FOR  MY  RIVAL!"  33 

in  to  announce  that  dinner  was  ready.  "You 
don't  mean  to  tell  me,  Tom,  that  you're  going 
off  again?" 

"That's  what  I  am,  Mrs.  Baggert.  You'd  bet- 
ter put  me  up  a  few  sandwiches,  for  I  don't  know 
when  I'D  be  back,"  and  Tom  winked  at  his  chum: 

"Oh,  of  all  things  I  ever  heard  in  all  my  born 
days!"  cried  the  housekeeper,  throwing  up  her 
hands.  "Will  you  ever  settle  down,  Tom  Swift  ?" 

"Maybe  he  will  when  Miss  Mary  Nestor  13 
ready  to  settle  down  too,"  said  Ned  mischievous- 
ly, referring  to  a  girl  of  whom  Tom  was  very 
fond. 

"Say,  I'll  fix  you  for  that!"  cried  our  hero,  as 
he  made  an  unsuccessful  grab  for  Ned.  "But, 
Mrs.  Baggert,  can  you  put  on  a  couple  of  extra 
plates?  Mr.  Damon  and  Mr.  Preston  will  stay 
to  lunch." 

"Not  if  it's  going  to  put  you  out,  Tom,"  ob- 
jected the  circus  man.  "I  can  go  to  the  hotel, 
and " 

"No,  indeed!"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Baggert  gra- 
ciously, for  she  prided  herself  on  her  housekeep- 
ing arrangements,  and  she  used  to  say  that  un- 
expected company  never  "flustrated"  her.  Soon 
the  little  party  was  seated  around  the  table,  where 
the  talk  went  from  grave  to  gay,  the  subject  of 
the  giants  being  uppermost. 


34  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

Mr.  Preston  told  many  funny  stories  of  his 
circus  days,  and  some  of  them  had  the  spice  of 
danger  in  them,  for  he  had  been  all  over  the 
world,  either  as  a  performer  or  as  the  owner  of 
amusement  enterprises. 

"Now,  the  next  question  to  be  settled,"  said 
the  old  circus  man,  when  they  were  once  more 
gathered  in  the  library,  "is  how  many  are  going?" 

"I  am,  for  one!"  exclaimed  Ned  quickly.  "I'm 
sure  my  folks  will  let  me.  Especially  as  we 
aren't  going  to  use  an  airship,  but  will  travel  just 
as  ordinary  folks  do." 

"Except  in  case  of  emergency,"  explained 
Tom.  "We'll  have  the  Lark  to  use  if  we  need 
her." 

"Oh,  of  course,"  agreed  Ned.  "How  about 
you,  Mr.  Damon?  Will  you  go?" 

The  odd  man  looked  around  the  room  before 
replying,  as  though  he  feared  someone  might  be 
listening  on  the  sly. 

"Go  on,  Andy  Foger  isn't  here,"  invited  Tom 
with  a  laugh. 

"I'll  go — if  I  can  pursuade  my  wife  to  let 
me,"  said  the  odd  man  in  a  whisper,  as  if,  even 
then,  the  good  lady  might  overhear  him.  "I'm 
not  going  to  say  anything  about  giants.  I'll  tell 
her  we  are  going  to  rescue  a  poor  fellow  from — » 


"LOOK  OUT  FOR  MY  RIVAL!"  35 

ec — well  from  the  natives  of  South  America,  and 
I'm  sure  she'll  consent.  Of  course  I'll  go." 

"That's  three,"  remarked  Tom.  "I  think  I 
can  get  Eradicate  to  go.  He  doesn't  like  airships, 
and  when  he  knows  we're  not  going  in  one  it  will 
please  him.  Then  he  likes  it  hot,  and  I  guess 
South  America  is  about  as  warm  as  they  come. 
I  am  almost  sure  we  can  count  on  Rad." 

"That  will  make  a  nice  party,"  commented  the 
circus  man.  "Now  I'll  make  out  a  list  of  the  sup- 
plies you'd  better  take,  and  tell  you  what  to  do 
about  getting  native  helpers,  and  so  on,"  and 
with  that  he  plunged  into  the  midst  of  details  that 
took  up  most  of  the  remainder  of  the  day. 

"Well,  then  I  guess  that  settles  most  every- 
thing," remarked  Tom,  several  hours  later.  "I'U 
begin  at  once  to  take  the  Lark  apart  for  shipment, 
and  begin  ordering  the  things  we  need." 

"Oh,  there's  one  thing  I  almost  forgot  about," 
said  Mr.  Preston  suddenly.  "Queer,  how  I  should 
overlook  that,  too.  I  don't  suppose  you  mind  a 
fight  or  two;  do  you?"  he  asked,  looking  sharply 
at  Tom.  ( 

"Well,  it  all  depends.  We've  had  several  fights 
on  other  expeditions,  though  I  can't  say  that  I 
like  'em,"  replied  the  young  inventor.  "Why  do» 
you  ask?" 

"Because  you  may  have  one — or  several,"  was 


36  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

the  answer  of  the  circus  man.  "You'll  have  to 
beware  of  my  rival." 

"Your  rival?" 

"Yes,  the  bitterest  foe  I  have  is  a  rival  circus 
man  named  Wayland  Waydell.  He,  or  some  of 
his  men,  are  always  camping  on  my  trail  when  I 
send  out  after  a  new  consignment  of  wild  ani- 
mals, and  I  shouldn't  be  a  bit  surprised  but  what 
he'd  try  to  get  ahead  of  me  on  the  giant  game." 

"But  how  does  he  know  you  want  giants?" 
asked  Tom. 

"Because  news  of  circus  expeditions  always 
leaks  out  somehow  or  other.  I'm  sure  Waydel! 
will  learn  that  you  are  acting  for  me,  and  so  I 
warn  you  in  time.  In  fact,  he  tried  to  get  ahead 
of  me  when  I  sent  Jake  Poddington  out  over  a 
year  ago,  and  I  always  had  my  suspicions  that 
he  had  a  hand  in  Jake's  disappearance,  but  maybe 
I'm  wrong.  So  that's  what  I  mean  when  I  say 
beware  of  Wayland  Waydell,  Tom." 

"I  will!"  exclaimed  Tom.  "He'll  have  to  get 
up  early  to  get  ahead  of  us."  But  Tom  little  knew 
the  man  against  whom  he  was  to  pit  himself  in 
the  search  for  giants. 


CHAPTER   V 

ANDY    FOGER    LEARNS    SOMETHING 

ONCE  Tom  Swift  made  up  his  mind  to  do  a 
thing,  he  did  not  waste  time  in  setting  about  it 
He  had  decided  to  go  to  giant  land,  and  that  was 
all  there  was  to  it.  His  father  talked  with  him 
about  the  matter,  pointed  out  the  dangers,  and 
suggested  that,  as  the  young  inventor  had  had 
many  adventures  in  the  last  few  years,  and  had 
made  considerable  money  from  the  discovery  of 
the  city  of  gold,  and  the  platinum  mines,  the  prize 
offered  for  a  giant  was  not  much  of  an  induce- 
ment. 

"But  it  isn't  that  so  much,  dad,"  explained 
Tom.  "There's  that  poor  circus  man,  maybe  suf- 
fering in  the  centre  of  South  America.  I  want  to 
find  him,  if  I  can,  or  get  some  news  that  he  died 
a  natural  death,  and  is  decently  buried." 

"You  never  can  do  it,  Tom." 

"Well,  dad,  I'm  going  to  make  a  big  try!"  he 
returned;  and  that  settled  it  as  far  as  Tom  was 
concerned. 

37 


38  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

For  several  days  after  the  visit  of  Mr.  Pres- 
ton Tom  was  busy  making  plans  for  his  trip  to 
South  America.  He  wanted  to  lay  out  a  regu- 
lar schedule  before  proceeding.  Ned  Newton 
had  had  hard  work  to  persuade  his  folks  to  let 
him  go,  but  they  finally  consented,  and  as  for 
Mr.  Damon,  his  plan  was  simple. 

Without  mentioning  giants  at  all,  he  took  Mr. 
Preston  home  with  him,  and  the  circus  man's 
tale  of  his  assistant  lost  in  the  wilds  of  South 
America  was  too  much  for  Mrs.  Damon. 

"Go?  Of  course  you'll  go!"  she  said  to  her 
husband.  "I  demand  that  you  go,  and  I  want 
you  to  find  that  poor  man  and  rescue  him.  If 
you  could  rescue  the  exiles  from  uncivilized  Si- 
beria I'm  sure  you  can  get  a  man  out  of  a  civil, 
ized  country." 

Mr.  Damon  did  not  stop  to  point  out  thai 
South  America  was  far  less  civilized,  in  some 
ways,  than  was  Russia.  He  just  kept  still,  and 
made  his  preparations  to  go.  Mr.  Preston  was 
a  distant  relative  of  the  odd  man,  and  that  was 
how  he  had  happened  to  meet  him  and  hear  the 
story  which  was  destined  to  play  such  an  im- 
portant part  in  the  life  of  Tom  Swift. 

"Do  you  think  we'll  have  much  trouble  aftet 
we  get  to  South  America,  and  strike  into  the  in* 
terior?"  asked  Mr.  Damon  one  afternoon, 


ANDY  FOGER  LEARNS  SOMETHING        39 

he  and  Mr.  Preston  were  helping  Tom  in.  the 
delicate  work  of  packing  the  wing  planes  of  the 
Lark. 

"No,  South  America  isn't  a  bad  country  to 
travel  in,"  replied  the  circus  man.  "The  natives 
are  fairly  friendly,  and  with  a  well-organized 
party,  and  plenty  of  money,  which  I  shall  see 
that  you  have,  you  ought  to  get  along  swimming- 
ly. Only  one  thing  bothers  me." 

"What's  that?"  asked  Tom  quickly. 

"That's  my  rival,  Way  dell.  He's  sure  to  make 
trouble  if  he  gets  on  your  trail." 

"Have  you  heard  from  him?" 

"No,  and  that's  what  makes  me  all  the  more 
suspicious.  If  he'd  come  out  and  fight  me  in  the 
open  it  wouldn't  be  so  bad.  But  this  underhand 
business  gets  on  my  nerves.  I  don't  know  what 
he's  up  to." 

"Maybe  he  isn't  up  to  anything,"  suggested 
Ned.  "He  may  not  even  know  you  are  going  to 
make  another  try  for  the  giants." 

"Oh,  yes,  he  does,"  replied  the  circus  man. 
"He  didn't  succeed  in  beating  me  when  poor  Jake 
was  after  them,  for  the  simple  reason  that  it 
was  a  snap  case,  and  even  I  didn't  know  that 
Poddington  was  trying  for  the  giants  until  he  had 
started.  But  Waydell  was  soon  after  him,  and 
he  knows  that  when  I  once  set  out  for  a  freak  or 


40  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

a  certain  kind  of  animal  I  keep  on  until  I  get  it. 
So  he  has  probably  already  figured  out  that  I'm 
making  new  plans  to  get  a  giant." 

"But  how  will  he  know  that  I  am  going?"  in- 
quired Tom. 

"I  don't  know  how  he  will  know,  but  he  will. 
We  circus  men  have  queer  ways  of  finding  out 
things.  I  shouldn't  be  a  bit  surprised  but  what 
he  was  already  plotting  and  scheming  to  send  an 
expedition  on  my  trail,  to  take  advantage  of  any- 
thing you  may  learn." 

"Well,  we'll  try  and  fool  him,  the  same  as  we 
did  the  Mexicans  when  we  hunted  for  the  city  of 
gold,"  spoke  Tom;  and  then  putting  aside  that 
worry,  he  and  the  others  labored  hard  to  get 
matters  in  shape  for  a  departure  to  South 
America. 

"I  suppose  Eradicate  is  going,"  remarked  Ned, 
in  the  intervals  of  packing  the  aeroplane. 

"Well,  I've  hinted  it  to  him,"  replied  Tom, 
"but  I  haven't  asked  him  outright  He  said  he! 
wouldn't  mind  going  to  a  hot  country  though. 
Here  he  comes  now.  Guess  I'll  see  how  he  takes 
it." 

The  colored  man  shuffled  up  with  a  hammer 
and  nails,  for  he  had  been  putting  covers  on 
packing  boxes. 

"Then   you    are   coming   with    us   to    South 


ANDY  FOGER  LEARNS  SOMETHING        41 

America;  aren't  you,  Rad?"  asked  Tom,  winking 
at  Ned. 

"Souf  America?  Am  dat  de  hot  country  yo'- 
all  was  referencin'  to?"  asked  Eradicate. 

"That's  it,  Rad.  It's  nice  and  warm  there. 
All  you  have  to  do  is  to  lie  under  a  tree  and 
cocoanuts  will  drop  off  into  your  mouth." 

"Cocoanuts  in  mah  mouf,  Massa  Tom!  'Scuse 
me!  I  doan't  want  t'  go  to  no  sich  country  as 
dat.  Cocoanuts  in  mah  mouf!  Why  I  ain't  got 
but  a  few  teef  left,  an'  a  cocoanut  droppin'  often 
a  tree  would  shorely  knock  dem  teef  out, 
shorely!" 

"Oh,  Rad,  I  didn't  mean  cocoanuts!  I  meant 
oranges  and  bananas — they're  soft,"  and  Tom 
glanced  quickly  at  Ned,  for  he  saw  that  he  had 
made  a  mistake. 

"Oh,  well,  den  dat's  diffunt,  Massa  Tom.  I 
jes  lubs  oranges  an'  bananas,  an'  ef  yo'-all  is 
shore  dat  I'll  find  some,  why,  I'll  come  along." 

"Find  'em?    Of  course  you  will!"  cried  Ned. 

"And  cocoanuts,  too,"  added  Tom.  "Only, 
Rad,  I  meant  to  say  that  the  monkeys  would 
throw  the  cocoanuts  down  to  you  from  the  trees. 
That  breaks  the  hard  shells  you  see,  and  all  you 
have  to  do  is  to  take  out  the  meat,  and  drink  the 
milk.  Then  the  monkeys  throw  you  down  a  palm 
leaf  fan  to  cool  yourself  off,  while  you're  eating 


42  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

it.     Oh,  I  tell  you,  Rad,  South  America  is  the 
place  to  go  to  have  a  good  time." 

"I  believe  you,  Massa  Tom.  When  do  we-all 
start?" 

"Pretty  soon  now." 

"An'  what  all  am  yo'  gwine  arter,  Massa' 
Tom?" 

The  young  inventor  thought  a  moment.  In 
times  past  he  ihad  not  hesitated  to  confide  in  his 
colored  helper,  but  of  late  years  Eradicate  had 
become  somewhat  childish,  and  he  talked  more 
than  was  necessary.  Tom  wondered  whether  it 
would  be  safe  to  trust  the  giant  secret  to  him. 
After  a  moment's  thought  he  realized  that  it 
would  not  be.  But,  at  the  same  time,  he  knew 
that  if  he  did  not  give  some  kind  of  an  answer 
Eradicate  would  become  suspicious,  and  that 
would  be  worse.  The  colored  helper  had  been 
with  Tom  on  too  many  trips  not  to  know  that  his 
master  never  went  without  some  object. 

"Well,  Rad,  we're  after  big  game  this  time," 
Tom  said.  "I  don't  know  what  it  will  be  that 
we'll  get,  whether  animals  or  plants,  and " 

"Oh,  I  knows,  Massa  Tom.  Yo'-all  means 
dem  orchard  plants  that  lib  on  air— dem  big 
orchard  plants."  Eradicate  meant  orchids,  of 
which  many  rare  and  beautiful  kinds  are  found 
in  South  America, 


ANDY  FOGER  LEARNS  SOMETHING 


43 


"Yes,  Rad,  I  guess  we  will  get  some  big  or- 
chids," agreed  Tom. 

"An*  I  shorely  will  help  climb  de  trees  arter 
'em.  Or  maybe  we  kin  git  de  monkeys  to  frow 
em  down,  same  as  dey  will  de  cocoanuts." 

"Maybe,  Rad.  Well,  now  go  ahead  and  nail 
up  the  rest  of  these  boxes.  We  want  to  get  started 
as  soon  as  we  can,"  and  the  colored  man  got 
busy,  murmuring  from  time  to  time  something 
about  oranges  and  bananas  and  cocoanuts. 

Everyone  was  occupied  in  getting  matters  in 
shape  for  the  trip  to  South  America,  even  Mr. 
Swift  laying  aside  his  work  on  his  pet  invention 
— a  gyroscope — while  he  helped  his  son.  And 
had  Tom  not  been  quite  so  engrossed  with  his 
preparations  he  might  have  gone  about  town 
more,  in  which  case  he  would  have  learned  some- 
thing that  might  have  saved  him  and  the  others 
considerable  trouble  and  no  little  danger.  And 
this  fact  was  that  Andy  Foger  had  been  in  Shop- 
ton  several  times  lately. 

After  the  trouble  which  the  red-haired  bully 
and  his  father  caused  Tom  and  his  friends  on 
their  trip  to  the  city  of  gold,  Mr.  Foger  moved 
away  from  Shopton.  He  had  lost  his  fortune 
and  had  to  begin  all  over  again.  The  Foger 
homestead  was  closed  up,  and  Andy  ceased  to  be 


44  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

a  fixture  of  the  town,  for  which  Tom  and  Ned 
were  very  glad. 

But  of  late  Andy  had  been  seen  in  Shopton 
several  times,  and  it  was  noticed  that,  on  one  or 
two  occasions,  he  had  a  man  with  him — a  man 
who  seemed  to  have  plenty  of  money — a  man 
with  an  air  about  him  not  unlike  that  of  Mr. 
Preston.  A  man  with  what  newspaper  men 
would  have  called  a  circus  or  theatrical  "air." 

This  man  had  visited  Shopton  soon  after  Mr. 
Preston  made  the  giant  proposition  to  Tom,  and 
before  meeting  Andy  Foger  had  made  special 
inquiries  about  Tom  Swift. 

"Who  are  the  people  who  have  a  hard  feeling 
against  this  young  inventor  in  town?"  the  man 
had  asked  of  several  persons. 

"Tom  Swift  has  more  friends  than  enemies," 
was  the  general  reply. 

"Oh,  surely  he  must  have  some  enemies,"  the 
man  insisted.  "He's  been  running  his  aeroplanes 
and  autos  around  town  a  long  time,  and  surely 
there  must  be  some  one  who  has  a  grudge  against 
him.  I  suppose  he  has  lots  of  friends,  but  who 
are  his  enemies?" 

Then  he  learned  about  Andy  Foger,  and,  hear- 
ing that  Andy  now  lived  in  a  nearby  town,  the 
man  had  at  once  gone  there.  It  was  not  long  be- 


ANDY  FOGER  LEARNS  SOMETHING        45 

fore  he  reappeared — and  the  red-haired  bully  was 
with  him. 

"And  you  haven't  learned  anything  yet, 
Andy?"  asked  this  mysterious  man  one  afternoon, 
when  he  met  his  tool  in  a  quiet  resort  in  Shopton. 

"Nothing  yet,  Mr.  Waydell.  But  give  me  a 
little  more  time." 

"Time!  You've  had  more  time  now  than  you 
need.  When  I  agreed  to  pay  you  for  finding  out 
what  part  of  South  America  Tom  Swift  would 
head  for  to  get  some  sort  of  a  freak  or  animal 
for  Preston's  circus  I  thought  you'd  make  good 
quicker  than  this." 

"So  did  I.  But  you  see  Tom  is  suspicious  of 
me,  and  so  is  his  chum,  Ned  Newton.  I  can't  go 
to  them,  and  if  Fm  seen  sneaking  around  the 
house  or  shop,  after  what  happened  last,  I'll  be 
driven  off." 

"Well,  it's  up  to  you.  I  paid  you  to  get  the 
information  and  I  expect  you  to  do  it.  Why 
don't  you  tackle  that  old  colored  man  whom,  I 
understand,  works  for  him?  He  ought  to  be 
simple  enough  to  give  the  game  away." 

"Eradicate?  I  will!  I  never  thought  of  that 
I'll  get  that  information  for  you,  Mr.  Waydell, 
in  a  few  days." 

"You'd  better,  if  you  want  to  keep  that 
money  " 


46  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

The  two  plotters  parted,  and  that  very  after- 
noon gave  Andy  the  chance  he  wanted.  He  met 
Eradicate  on  his  way  to  the  village  where  he  was 
going  after  something  Tom  needed. 

"Hello,  Rad!"  called  Andy  with  a  show  of 
good  feeling.  "I  haven't  seen  you  in  some  time. 
I  suppose  you're  getting  too  old  to  travel  around 
with  Tom  any  more?" 

"Gittin'  too  old!"  exclaimed  the  colored  man 
indignantly,  for  that  was  his  sore  point.  "What 
yo'-all  mean,  Andy  Foger?  I  ain't  gittin'  old, 
an'  neider  am  Boomerang." 

"Oh,  I  thought  you  were,  as  you  haven't  been 
on  any  trips  lately. " 

"I  ain't,  hey?  Well  I's  gwine  on  one  right 
soon,  let  me  tell  you  dat,  Andy  Foger!" 

"No!  Is  that  so?  Glad  to  hear  it.  Up  to.  the 
North  Pole  I  suppose?" 

"No,  sah ;  not  much !  No  cold  country  for  this 
coon!  I's  gwine  where  it's  nice  an  'warm,  anr 
where  de  cocoanuts  fall  in  yo'  mouf — I  mean 
where  de  bananas  an'  oranges  fall  in  you  mouf, 
an'  de  monkeys  frow  down  cocoanuts  an'  palm 
leaf  fans  to  yo' !" 

"Where's  that,  Rad?"  asked  Andy,  and  he 
tried  to  make  his  voice  sound  indifferent,  as 
though  the  matter  did  not  interest  him. 

"South  America,  clat's  where  it  am,  an'  I's 


'ANDY  FOGER  LEARNS  SOMETHING        4^ 

gwine  wif  Massa  Tom.  We's  gwine  t'  git  a 
monstrous  big  orchard  plant." 

"Oh,  yes;  I've  heard  about  them.  Well,  I 
hope  you  get  all  the  oranges  and  bananas  you 
want.  South  America,  eh  ?  I  suppose  along  the 
Amazon  river,  where  they  have  crocodiles  forty 
feet  long,  that  are  always  hungry." 

"No,  sah!  No  crockermiles  fo'  me!  We  ain't 
goin'  neah  de  Amerzon  riber  at  all.  We's  gwine 
away  down  in  de  middle  part  of  South  America. 
It's  a  place  suffin  laik  Gomeonaway — or  Goon- 
away,  or  suffin'  laik  dat." 

"Oh,  yes ;  I  know  where  you  mean!"  and  Andy 
could  hardly  conceal  the  note  of  triumph  in  his 
voice.  He  had  the  very  information  he  wanted 
from  the  simple  colored  man.  "Yes,  I  guess  there 
are  no  crocodiles  there,  and  plenty  of  monkeys 
and  cocoanuts.  Well,  I  hope  you  have  a  good 
time,"  and  Andy  hurried  away  to  seek  out  the 
rival  circus  maa 


CHAPTER  VI 

ALARMING  NEWS 

"HAND  me  that  hammer,  Ned." 

"There  it  is,  right  behind  you,  on  the  bench.* 

"Oh,  so  it  is.  Here  are  those  nails  you  were 
asking  for." 

"Good.  Now  we'll  make  things  hum,"  and  Ned 
Newton's  voice  was  drowned  in  the  rapid  driving 
of  nails  into  boards. 

"Bless  my  screw  driver!"  suddenly  exclaimed 
Mr.  Damon,  who  was  sawing  planks  to  make 
covers  for  boxes. 

"What's  the  matter?"  asked  Tom,  looking  up 
from  a  bundle  he  was  tying  up.  It  contained  the 
magneto  of  his  aeroplane  and  he  was  putting 
waterproof  paper  about  it.  "Did  you  cut  your 
finger?" 

"No,  but  I  just  happened  to  think  that  I  nailed 
iny  watch  up  in  that  last  box." 

"Nailed  up  your  watch!"  cried  Mr.  Preston, 
who,  after  a  trip  to  New  York  to  make  arrange- 
ments for  passages  on  a  steamer,  had  come  back 
to  help  Tom  pack  up. 

48 


ALARMING  NEWS  49 

"Yes,  I  took  it  out  to  see  how  long  it  took  me 
to  make  a  box  cover,  and  then  Tom  asked  me  to 
nail  up  that  box  containing  the  motor  parts,  and 
I  laid  my  watch  right  down  on  top,  and  put  the 
boards  over  it." 

"Well,  the  only  thing  to  do  is  to  take  off  the' 
cover,"  remarked  Tom  grimly. 

"Bless  my  chronometer!  That  will  delay 
things,"  said  the  odd  man  with  a  sigh.  "But  I 
suppose  there  is  no  hope  for  it,"  and  he  pro- 
ceeded to  open  the  box,  while  Tom,  Ned,  the  cir- 
cus man  and  Eradicate  busied  themselves  over 
the  hundred  and  one  things  to  be  done  before 
they  would  be  ready  for  the  trip  to  the  interior 
of  South  America. 

"Look  out,  Ned!"  called  Tom.  "You're  mak- 
ing those  top  boards  too  long.  They'll  stick  out 
over  the  edge,  and  be  ripped  off  if  the  box  catches 
on  anything." 

"Yes,  you  can't  be  too  careful,"  cautioned  Mr. 
Preston.  "Each  box  or  package  must  be  tiie 
right  weight,  or  the  porters  and  mule  drivers 
won't  carry  them  into  the  interior.  You  may 
have  to  cross  rough  trails,  and  even  ford  rivers. 
And  as  for  bridges !  well,  the  less  said  about  them 
the  better.  You  aren't  going  to  have  any  picnic, 
and  if  you  want  to  back  out,  Torn  Swift,  now  is 
fhe  time  to  say  so." 


50  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"What!  Back  out?"  cried  our  hero.  "Never! 
I  said  I'd  go  and  I'm  going.  Ned,  pass  that  brace 
and  bit  over,  will  you.  I've  got  to  bore  a  hole  for 
these  screws." 

And  so  the  work  went  on  in  the  big  aeroplane 
shed,  which  they  had  made  their  packing  head- 
quarters. 

The  Lark,  that  small,  but  strong  and  speedy 
aeroplane,  had  been  safely  packed,  and  most  of  it 
had  been  sent  on  ahead  to  New  York,  where  the 
travellers  were  to  take  the  steamer.  There  re- 
mained to  be  transported  their  clothing,  weapons 
and  ammunition,  and  several  bundles  and  cases 
of  trinkets  which  would  be  of  more  value  in  bar- 
tering with  the  natives  than  money.  Tom  and 
Mr.  Preston  had  -selected  the  things  with  great 
care,  and  at  the  last  moment  the  young  inventor 
had  packed  a  box  of  his  own,  and  said  nothing 
about  it.  Included  in  it  were  some  of  his  own 
and  his  father's  inventions,  and  had  one  been 
given  a  glance  into  that  same  box  he  would  have 
wondered  at  the  queer  things. 

"What  in  the  world  are  you  taking  with  you, 
anyhow?"  asked  Ned,  of  his  chum,  noticing  the 
mysterious  box. 

"You'll  see,  if  we  ever  get  to  giant  land,"  re- 
plied Tom  with  a  smile. 

"How  long  before  we  can  start?"  asked  Mr, 


ALARMING  NEWS  51 

Damon,  late  that  day,  when  most  of  the  hard 
work  had  been  finished.  He  was  as  anxious  and 
as  eager  as  either  of  the  youths  to  make  a  start. 

"We  ought  to  be  ready  at  least  a  week  from 
to-day,"  replied  Tom,  "and  perhaps  sooner." 

"Sooner,  if  you  can  make  it,"  suggested  Mr. 
Preston.  "The  steamer  sails  a  week  from  to-day, 
and  if  you  miss  that  one  you'll  have  to  wait 
two  weeks  more." 

"Then  a  week  from  to-day  we'll  sail,"  decided 
Torx,  with  emphasis.  "We'll  work  nights  getting 
things  in  shape." 

Really,  though,  not  much  more  remained  to  be 
done,  and  the  next  day  Mr.  Preston  again  went 
to  New  York,  accompanying  a  shipment  of  boxes 
and  cases  that  Tom  sent  on  ahead. 

The  two  chums  were  busy  in  the  aeroplane 
hangar  a  few  days  after  this,  nailing  up  the  last 
of  some  light  cases  containing  medicines,  per- 
sonal effects  and  comforts  that  would  accompany 
them  on  their  trip. 

"Well,  I'm  glad  of  one  thing,"  remarked  Tom 
thoughtfully,  as  he  drove  home  the  last  nail  in. 
a  box,  "and  that  is  that  we  won't  be  bothered 
with  that  Andy  Foger  on  this  trip.  I  haven't  seen 
hide  nor  hair  of  him  in  some  time.  I  guess  he 
and  his  father  are  down  and  out." 

"I  guess  so.    I  haven't  seen  him  either." 


52  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Massa  Andy  were  in  town  a  few  days  ago," 
ventured  Eradicate. 

"He  was?"  cried  Tom.  "Did  you  see  him? 
What  was  he  doing,  Rad?" 

"Nuffin,  same  as  usual.  He  done  say  I  were 
too  old  to  go  on  any  more  hexpiditions  wif  yo' 
an*  I  proved  dat  I  wasn't." 

"Proved  that  you  weren't,  Rad?  How?"  And 
Tom  looked  anxiously  at  his  colored  helper. 

"Why,  I  done  say  t'  him  dat  I  was  gwine  wif 
yo'-all  dis  time,  t'  dat  Comeaway  country  after 
a  big  orchard  plant.  Dat's  how  I  done  prove  it 
to  dat  Andy  Foger." 

"Rad,  you  didn't  tell  him  we  were  going  to 
South  America?"  asked  Tom  reproachfully. 

"Suah  I  done  so,  Massa  Tom.  Dat  were  de 
only  way  t'  prove  t'  him  dat  I  wa'an't  gittin' 
too  old." 

"Oh,  Rad!  I'm  afraid "  and  Tom  hesi- 
tated. 

"Oh,  I  don't  believe  it  amounted  to  anything," 
interposed  Ned.  "Andy  didn't  have  any  one  with 
him,  did  he,  Rad?" 

"No,  Massa  Ned.  He  were  all  alone  by  his- 
se'f." 

"Then  I  guess  it's  all  right,  Tom.  Andy  was 
only  rigging  Eradicate,  and  he  didn't  pay  any 
attention  to  what  he  said" 


ALARMING  NEWS  53 

"Well,  I  hope  so,"  and  the  young  inventor 
wore  a  thoughtful  air  as  he  resumed  the  finish 
of  the  packing. 

The  colored  man,  blissfully  unconscious  that 
he  had  been  the  innocent  cause  of  a  grave  danger 
that  overhung  Tom  and  his  friends,  whistled 
gaily  as  he  gathered  the  boxes,  bales  and  pack- 
ages into  a  pile,  ready  for  the  expressman,  who 
was  to  call  in  the  morning. 

Tom,  together  with  Ned,  Mr,  Damon  and 
Eradicate,  were  to  leave  the  following  afternoon, 
and  stay  in  New  York  until  the  sailing  of  the 
steamer.  They  preferred  to  be  a  day  or  so  ahead 
of  time  than  half  an  hour  late,  and  were  taking 
no  chances. 

"Bless  my  timetable!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Damon 
that  night,  as  they  sat  in  the  library  of  the  Swift 
home,  checking  over  the  lists  to  make  sure  that 
nothing  had  been  forgotten,  "bless  my  timetable, 
but  it  doesn't  seem  possible  that  we  are  going  to 
start  at  last" 

"Yes,  we'll  soon  be  on  the  way  to  giant  land," 
spoke  Tom  in  a  low  voice.  Somehow  the  young 
inventor  did  not  seem  to  be  in  his  usually  bright 
Spirits. 

"You  don't  seem  very  enthusiastic,"  remarked 
Ned.  "What's  the  matter,  Tom?" 

"Qh,  nothing  much.     Though  I  would  feel 


54  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

better  if  I  knew  that  Andy  Foger  didn't  have 
any  inkling  of  what  our  plans  were,"  he  added, 
for  Eradicate  was  not  present. 

"Oh,  nonsense!"  exclaimed  his  chum.  "Mr. 
Preston  will  be  here  in  the  morning,  and  he'll 
know  whether  his  rival  has  any  idea  of  camping 
on  our  trail.  Cheer  up!" 

"Yes,  I  suppose  I  am  foolish  to  worry,"  ad* 
mitted  Tom,  "but,  somehow  I  can't  help  it.  I 
wish  .Mr.  Preston  was  here  now  to  tell  us  that 
Wayland  Waydell  had  gone  off  to  the  centre  of 
Africa  for  a  dwarf.  Then  I'd  know  we  had 
nothing  to  fear.  But  I  guess " 

Tom  did  not  finish  his  sentence  for,  at  that 
moment,  there  came  a  peal  at  the  door  bell.  In- 
stinctively every  one  started,  and  Mr.  Damon 
exclaimed: 

"Bless  my  burglar  alarm!    What's  that?" 

"Someone  at  the  door,  Tom,"  replied  Mr. 
Swift  calmly.  "That's  nothing  unusual.  It's 
early  yet." 

But,  in  spite  of  his  reassuring  words,  there 
was  a  feeling  of  vague  alarm. 

"I'll  see  who  it  is,"  volunteered  Ned.  "If  it's 
Andy  Foger " 

Mrs.  Baggert  entered  the  room  at  that  moment. 
She  had  hurried  to  the  door,  and,  as  she  entered 
she  announced: 


ALARMING  NEWS 


55 


"Mr.  Preston!" 

"Yes,  it  is  I!"  added  the  circus  man  following 
her  quickly  into  the  room.  "I  came  on  to-night 
instead  of  waiting  for  the  morning,  Tom.  I  have 
bad  news  for  you!" 

"Bad  news !"  gasped  the  young  inventor.  "Has 
Waydell  got  hold  of  your  plans." 

"I'll  wager  it  has  something  to  do  with  Andy 
Foger!"  exclaimed  Ned. 

"Neither  one,"  spoke  the  circus  man.  "But  I 
have  just  had  a  cable  dispatch  from  one  of  my 
animal  agents  in  Brazil,  saying  that  war  has 
broken  out  among  the  tribes  in  the  central  part 
of  South  America.  A  big  native  war  is  being 
waged  all  around  giant  land,  as  near  as  we  can 
figure  it  out." 

"War  among  the  native  tribes!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Swift 

"Yes,  and  one  of  the  worst  in  years.  Of 
course,  Tom,  after  such  alarming  news  as  this 
I  won't  hold  you  to  your  promise  to  go.  It's  all 
off.  I'm  sorry,  but  you'd  better  wait.  It  won't 
be  safe  to  go  there  now.  Better  unpack,  Tom." 

For  a  moment  there  was  a  silence  in  the  room. 
Then  the  young  inventor  leaped  to  his  feet  and 
faced  the  circus  man. 

"Unpack?"  cried  Tom  in  ringing  tones. 
"Never!  I'm  going  to  giant  land,  fight  or  n<j 


56  •  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

fight !  Ned,  come  with  me  and  we'll  put  in  some 
of  my  electric  rifles.  I  wasn't  going  to  take 
them  along,  but  I  will  now.  Unpack?  I  guess 
not !  I'm  going  to  get  a  giant  for  you,  Mr.  Pres- 
ton, and  save  Jake  Poddington  if  he's  alive, 
Come  on,  Ned. 


CHAPTER  VII 

FIRE  ON  BOARD 

"YouR  electric  rifles !"  exclaimed  Ned  Newton, 
as  he  followed  his  chum  to  the  storeroom,  where 
Tom  kept  a  number  of  spare  guns.  "It's  a  good 
thing  you  thought  of  them,  Tom." 

"Yes,  I  didn't  think  we'd  need  them,  for  I 
believe  peaceable  means  are  the  best  to  use  on 
natives.  But  if  there's  a  war,  and  we  have  to 
defend  ourselves  against  the  tribes,  we'll  take 
along  something  that  will  do  more  damage  than 
an  ordinary  rifle,  and  yet  I  can  regulate  it  so  that 
it  will  only  stun,  and  not  kill." 

"That's  the  stuff,  Tom.  No  use  in  being  need- 
lessly cruel.  "How  many  will  you  take?" 

"Two  or  three.    We  may  need  'em  all." 

A  little  later  the  two  lads  returned  to  the 
library  where  Mr.  Damon,  Mr.  Swift  and  the 
circus  man  were  anxiously  awaiting  them.  Mr. 
Preston  looked  curiously  at  several  objects  which 
Tom  and  Ned  carried.  The  objects  looked  liked 
guns  but  were  different  from  any  the  giant- 
seeker  had  seen, 

57 


58  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"What  are  they?"  he  asked  Tom. 

"Electric  rifles.  One  of  my  inventions,"  and 
Tom  showed  how  the  weapon  worked.  Those 
of  you  who  have  read  the  volume  entitled,  "Tom 
Swift  and  His  Electric  Rifle"  will  remember  this 
curious  weapon.  It  was  worked  by  a  stored 
charge  of  magnetism  of  the  wireless  kind.  By 
this  a  concentrated  globule  of  electricity  was  pro- 
jected from  the  muzzle,  and  it  could  be  made 
strong  or  weak  at  the  will  of  the  marksman.  It 
could  be  made  so  powerful  that  it  would  totally 
annihilate  a  whale,  as  Tom  had  once  proved,  or 
it  could  be  made  so  mild  that  it  would  put  an 
enemy,  or  several  of  them,  to  sleep  almost  as 
gently  as  some  narcotic,  and  they  would  awaken 
after  several  hours,  little  the  worse  for  their  ex- 
perience. 

A  charge  of  electricity  as  powerful  as  five 
thousand  volts  could  be  concentrated  into  a  small 
wireless  globule  the  size  of  a  bullet,  and  this 
would  fly  through  space,  or  even  through  solid 
objects  until,  reaching  the  limit  of  the  range  set, 
would  strike  the  object  aimed  at.  With  his 
wonderful  electric  rifle  Tom  had  not  only  killed 
elephants,  and  other  big  game,  but  fought  off 
the  red  pygmies  of  Africa. 

"And  we  may  have  a  use  for  it  in  South  Amer- 


FIRE  ON  BOARD  59 

jca,"  he  added  as  he  explained  the  workings  to 
Mr.  Preston. 

"Well,  I'm  glad  you  didn't  back  out,"  com- 
mented the  circus  man,  "and  this  may  come  in 
mighty  handy.  I'll  feel  easier  about  you  now, 
Tom,  when  I  know  you  have  some  electric  rifles 
with  you." 

The  circus  man  was  told  of  what  Eradicate 
had  said  to  Andy,  but  he  was  of  the  opinion  that 
no  harm  would  result  from  it. 

"As  far  as  I  can  learn,"  went  on  Mr.  Preston, 
"my  old  rival  Waydell  has  given  up  the  giant 
idea.  He  is  looking  for  a  two-headed  crocodile, 
said  to  be  somewhere  along  the  Nile  river,  and 
he's  fitting  out  an  expedition  there  I  understand. 
I  guess  we  won't  be  bothered  with  him.  But  the 
giant  for  mine!  If  I  get  that  sort  of  an  attrac- 
tion his  two-headed  crocodile  won't  be  in  it.  I 
hope  you  have  luck,  Tom  Swift." 

The  last  details  of  the  expedition  were  con- 
sidered. Nothing  seemed  to  have  been  left  un- 
done, and  though  carrying  the  electric  rifles  would 
Hake  a  little  more  baggage,  no  one  minded  that. 

"I  kin  carry  dem,"  said  Eradicate.  "I  ain't 
got  much  baggage  of  mah  own." 

So  it  was  arranged,  and  early  the  next  morn- 
ing the  little  band  of  intrepid  travelers,  who  were 
going  in  search  of  giant  land,  started  for  New 


60  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

York.  They  little  knew  what  was  ahead  of 
them,  nor  what  dire  perils  they  were  to  pass 
through. 

Of  course  Tom  had  said  good-bye  to  Mary 
Nestor  and  half- jokingly,  he  had  promised  to 
bring  back  a  giant  of  his  own,  that  she  might  see 
one  outside  of  a  circus. 

"But,  Tom,"  Mary  exclaimed  with  a  laugh, 
"what  will  you  do  with  one  of  the  big  creatures 
if  you  get  one?" 

"Have  him  help  me  on  my  newest  invention — « 
the  noiseless  airship,"  answered  the  young  in* 
ventor.  "I  need  some  one  to  lift  heavy  weights. 
It  will  save  putting  up  a  derrick.  Yes,  I  think 
I'll  get  a  giant  of  my  own." 

The  last  good-byes  were  said,  and  the  parting 
between  Tom  and  his  father  was  affecting. 

"I'll  soon  be  back,  dad,"  he  said  in  as  cheerful 
a  tone  as  he  could  assume,  "and  I'll  help  you 
finish  your  gyroscope." 

"I  hope  you  will,  Tom,"  and  then,  with  a  pres- 
sure of  his  son's  hand,  Mr.  Swift  turned  away 
and  went  into  the  house,  closing  the  door  after 
him. 

The  first  part  of  the  trip  to  New  York  was 
rather  a  silent  one,  no  one  caring  to  talk  much. 
Eradicate  was  the  only  cheerful  member  of  the 
party,  which  included  the  circus  man,  who  was 


FIRE  ON  BOARD  6l 

going  as  far  as  the  steamer  with  Tom  and  his 
frknds. 

"Say,"  Ned  exclaimed  finally,  "any  one  would 
think  we  were  going  to  a  funeral!" 

"That's  right,"  agreed  Tom.  "I  guess  some- 
thing is  on  all  our  nerves.  Let's  do  something  to 
take  it  off.  Here  comes  a  boy  with  some  funny 
papers.  We'll  buy  some  and  read  all  the  jokes. " 

This  proved  a  diversion,  and  before  the  train 
had  gone  many  miles  more  the  giant-hunters 
were  talking  and  laughing  as  though  they  were 
merely  starting  on  a  short  pleasure  trip,  instead 
of  an  an  expedition  to  the  dangerous  jungles  of 
South  America. 

They  put  up  at  a  good  hotel  in  New  York,  and 
as  soon  as  they  were  established  Tom  and  Mr. 
Preston  went  to  the  steamer  Calaban  which  was 
to  land  them  at  Buenos  Ayres.  They  found  that 
there  was  some  confusion  about  their  luggage 
and  boxes,  and  it  took  them  the  better  part  of  a 
day  to  get  the  tangle  straightened  out,  and  their 
stuff  stored  together  in  one  hold. 

"It  will  be  easier  to  get  it  out  if  it's  all  to- 
gether," said  Tom,  at  the  conclusion  of  their 
labors,  and  then  he  and  the  circus  man  returned 
to  the  hotel.  The  ship  was  to  sail  two  days 
later,  and,  several  hours  before  the  time  set  for 


62  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

the  departure,  Tom  and  his  friends  were  on 
board. 

"You  don't  see  anything  of  your  rival  circus 
friend,  do  you?"  asked  Tom,  of  the  man  who 
wanted  a  giant. 

"Not  a  sign,"  was  the  answer,  as  Mr.  Preston 
glanced  over  the  throng  of  on-coming  passengers. 
"I  guess  we've  either  given  him  the  slip,  or  he's 
given  up  the  game.  You  won't  have  to  worry 
about  h:m.  Just  take  it  easy  until  you  start  for  the 
interior,  and  from  then  on  you'll  have  hard  work 
enough." 

The  last  of  the  cargo  was  being  taken  aboard, 
the  late  passengers  had  arrived  %nd  were  anx- 
iously matching  to  see  that  their  baggage  was  not 
lost  As  Mr.  Preston  stood  talking  with  Tom 
near  the  gangplank,  a  clerical  looking  gentleman 
approached  the  circus  man. 

"I  beg  your  pardon,"  he  began  in  mild  accents, 
"but  could  you  tell  me  where  my  stateroom  is?" 
and  he  showed  his  ticket.  "I'm  not  used  to 
traveling,"  he  needlessly  added  for  that  fact  was 
very  evident.  Mr.  Preston  informed  him  how 
to  get  to  his  berth,  and  the  gentleman  went  on: 
'"Are  you  going  all  the  way  to  Buenos  Ay  res?" 

"No.  but  my  friend  is,"  and  the  circus  man 
nodded  at  Tom. 

"Oh,  I'm  so  glad!"  the  stranger  exclaimed. 


FIRE  ON  BOARD  63 

"Then  I  shall  have  someone  of  whom  I  can  ask 
questions.  I  am  quite  lost  when  I  travel." 

"I'll  help  you  all  I  can,"  volunteered  Tom, 
"and  I'll  show  you  to  your  stateroom  now." 

"Ah,  thank  you.    Your  name  is " 

"Tom  Swift,"  supplied  the  young  inventor. 

"Ah,  yes,  I  believe  I  have  read  about  your 
airships.  I  am  the  Reverend  Josiah  Blinderpool. 
I  am  taking  a  little  vacation.  I  trust  we  shall 
become  good  friends." 

"Humph,  he's  a  regular  infant,  to  be  away 
from  civilization,"  mused  Tom,  when  he  had 
showed  the  clergyman  to  the  proper  stateroom. 
"He'll  get  into  trouble,  he's  so  innocent." 

If  he  could  have  seen  that  same  "clergyman" 
double  up  with  mirth  when  he  had  closed  his 
stateroom  door  after  him,  Tom  would  not  have 
felt  so  sure  about  that  same  "innocence." 

"To  think  that  I  was  talking  face  to  face  witK 
Sam  Preston  and  he  never  tumbled  to  who  I 
was!"  exclaimed  the  newcomer  softly.  "That's 
rich!  Now  if  I  play  my  cards  right  I  shouldn't 
be  surprised  but  what  they'd  invite  me  to  come 
along  with  them.  That  would  just  suit  me.  I 
wouldn't  have  any  trouble  then,  getting  on  the 
track  of  those  giants.  The  information  Way- 
dell  got  from  that  red-haired  Foger  chap  wasn** 


64  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

any  too  definite,"  and  once  more  the  man  wear- 
ing the  garb  of  a  minister  chuckled. 

"Well,  I'll  say  good-bye,"  remarked  Mr.  Pres- 
ton, a  little  later,  when  the  warning  bell  had 
rung.  "I  guess  you'll  get  along  all  right.  I 
haven't  seen  a  sign  of  Waydell,  or  any  of  his 
slick  agents.  You'll  have  no  trouble  I  guess." 

But  if  the  circus  man  could  have  seen  the 
"clergyman"  at  that  same  time  looking  over  let- 
ters addressed  to  "Hank  Delby,"  and  signed 
"Way land  Waydell"  he  would  not  have  been  so 
confident. 

Mr.  Preston  bade  good-bye  to  his  friends,  the 
gangplank  was  hauled  up,  and  a  hoarse  blast  came 
from  the  whistle  of  the  Calaban. 

"Bless  my  pocketbook!"  cried  Mr.  Damon, 
"We're  off"" 

"Yep,  off  t'  git  dat  big,  giant  orchard  plant," 
chimed  in  Eradicate. 

"Hush!"  exclaimed  Tom,  who  did  not  like  the 
use  of  the  word  "giant"  even  in  that  connection. 
"Don't  tell  everyone  our  business,  Rad." 

"Dat's  right,  Massa  Tom.  "I  clean  done  for- 
got dat  it's  a  sort  of  secret.  I'll  keep  mighty  still 
'bout  it." 

The  Calaban  swung  out  into  the  river  and  be« 
gan  steaming  down  the  bay. 

The  first  week  of  the  voyage  was  uneventfux 


FIRE  ON  BOARD  65 

The  weather  was  exceptionally  fine,  and  hardly 
any  one  was  seasick.  The  Reverend  Mr.  Blinder* 
pool  was  often  on  deck,  and  he  made  it  a  point  to 
cultivate  the  acquaintance  of  Tom  and  his  friends. 
In  spite  of  the  fact  that  he  said  he  had  traveled 
very  little,  he  seemed  to  know  much  about  hidden 
corners  of  the  world,  but  always,  as  on  an  occa~ 
sion  when  he  had  accidently  let  slip  some  remark 
that  showed  he  had  been  in  far-off  China  or  Asia, 
he  would  suddenly  change  the  conversation  when 
it  verged  to  travel. 

"There's  something  queer  about  that  minister,9 
said  Ned  after  one  of  these  occasions,  "but  1 
can't  decide  what  it  is." 

"Nonsense!"  exclaimed  Tom,  who  rather  liked 
the  man. 

"No  nonsense  about  it.  Why  should  a  minister 
lake  a  trip  like  this  when  he  isn't  sick,  and  when 
he  isn't  going  to  establish  a  mission  in  South 
America?  There's  something  queer  about  it,  for, 
by  his  own  words  he  just  took  this  voyage  as  a 
whim." 

"Oh,  you're  too  fussy,"  declared  Tom;  and  for 
the  time  the  subject  was  dropped. 

They  ran  into  a  storm  when  about  ten  days 
out,  and  for  a  while  they  had  a  rough  time  of  it, 
and  then  the  weather  cleared  again. 

It  was  one  evening,  after  the  formal  dinner, 


66  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

when  Tom  and  Ned  were  strolling  about  on  decle, 
before  turning  in,  that,  the  quiet  of  the  ship  was 
broken  by  what  is  always  an  alarming  cry  at  sea. 

"Fire!  Fire!"  shouted  a  man,  pointing  to  a 
thin  wisp  of  smoke  curling  up  from  the  deck 
amidships. 

"Keep  quiet!"  yelled  one  of  the  stewards.  "It 
is  nothing! 

"It's  a  fire,  I  tell  you!"  insisted  the  man,  and 
several  others  took  up  the  cry. 

A  panic  was  imminent,  and  the  captain  came 
running  from  his  quarters. 

"What  is  it?"  he  asked. 

An  officer  hurried  to  his  side,  and  said  some- 
thing but  in  such  a  low  voice  that  Tom,  who  was 
standing  close  beside  the  two,  scarcely  heard  it. 
But  he  did  hear  this: 

"There's  a  fire,  sir,  in  hold  number  se\enteen. 
We  have  turned  the  hose  in  there,  and  the  pumps 
are  working." 

"Very  good,  Mr.  Meld.     Now  try  and  quiet 
the  passengers.     Tell  them  it  doesn't  amount  to 
much,  and  if  it  does  we  can  flood  that  compart- 
ment" 
•     Tom  started  at  that. 

"Come  on,  Ned!"  he  cried,  grabbing  his  chum 
by  the  arm. 

"Why,  what's  up?    What's  the  matter?" 


FIRE  ON  BOARD  67 

"Matter?  Matter  enough!  The  fire  is  in  the 
hold  where  all  our  stuff  is  stored,  and  if  the 
flames  reach  that  box  I  packed  last — well,  I 
wouldn't  give  much  for  the  ship!"  and  fairly 
dragging  his  chum  along,  Torn  raced  for  the 
place  where  the  smoke  was  now  coming  up  iff 
thicker  clouds. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

A  NARROW  ESCAPE 

"HERE,  come  back!    You  can't  go  past  here!" 

"But  I've  got  to  go!  I  tell  you  I  must  go! 
It's  important!" 

The  first  speaker  was  one  of  the  ship's  officers, 
and  the  other  was  Tom  Swift,  who,  accompanied 
by  his  chum,  was  trying  to  get  past  a  rope  that 
had  been  hastily  stretched  in  front  of  the  hold 
where  the  smoke  was  rolling  up  in  ever-thicken- 
ing clouds. 

"It's  important  that  you  stay  where  you  are/' 
insisted  the  officer.  "Look  here  young  man,  do 
you  want  to  start  a  panic  ?  You  know  what  that 
is  on  board  ship.  Keep  cool,  we'll  get  the  fire  out 
all  right." 

}  "I  am  cool,"  responded  Tom,  and,  though  he 
/did  look  a  bit  excited,  he  was  calm  enough  to 
know  what  he  was  doing. 

"Then  keep  back  .'"insisted  the  officer. 

A  crowd  was  gathering  and  there  were  omi- 
68 


A  NARROW  ESCAPE  69 

fious  whispers  sent  back  and  forth.  Some  hysteri- 
cal women  were  beginning  to  scream,  and  there 
were  anxious  looks  on  all  faces. 

"I  tell  you  it's  important  that  I  go  down  there," 

insisted  Tom.    "I  want  to  get  a  box " 

i  "We'll  look  after  the  baggage  of  the  passen- 
gers," declared  the  officer.  "You  don't  need  to 
worry,  young  man." 

"But  I  tell  you  I  do!"  and  Tom's  voice  was 
loud  now.  "It  isn't  so  much  on  my  account, 

as "  and  then,  stepping  quickly  to  the  side  of 

the  officer  he  whispered  something. 

"What!"  cried  the  officer.  "You  don't  tell 
me  f  That  was  a  risk !  I  guess  I'll  have  to  help 
^ou  get  it  out.  Here,  Mr.  Simm,"  he  called  to 
one  of  the  mates,  "stand  guard  here.  I'm  going 
tfown  into  the  hold  with  this  young  man." 

"Shall  I  come?"  cried  Ned. 

"No,  you  go  stay  with  Mr.  Damon  and  Eradi- 
cate," answered  Tom.  "Tell  them  everything  is 
all  right.  And  for  cats'  sake  keep  Rad  cool. 
Don't  let  him  get  excited  and  start  a  panic.  I'll 
be  back  in  a  minute." 

With  that  Tom  and  the  officer  disappeared 
from  view,  and  Ned,  after  wondering  what  it 
was  all  about,  hastened  to  reassure  Mr.  Damon 
and  the  colored  man  that  there  was  no  danger, 
though  from  the  manner  in  which  Tom  had  acted 


70  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

his  chum  was  convinced  that  something  was 
wrong. 

Meanwhile  our  hero,  accompanied  by  the  of- 
ficer, was  groping  his  way  through  the  thick 
smoke  in  the  compartment.  The  officer  had 
switched  on  the  electric  lights,  and  they  shone 
with  a  yellow  haze  through  the  clouds  of  chok- 
ing vapor. 

"Can  you  see  it?"  asked  the  officer  anxiously. 

"I  had  it  put  where  I  could  easily  get  at  it,** 
answered  Tom  with  a  cough,  for  some  of  the 
smoke  had  got  down  his  throat.  "I  had  an  idea 
I  might  need  it  in  a  hurry.  Here  it  is!"  and  he 
pointed  to  a  large  box,  marked  with  his  initials 
in  red  paint.  "Give  me  a  hand  and  we'll  get  it 
out." 

"Yes,  and  send  it  on  deck.  See,  there's  the 
fire!"  and  the  officer  pointed  to  where  a  glow 
could  be  seen  amid  some  bales  of  cotton.  "It 
will  be  slow  burning,  that's  one  good  thing,  and 
by  turning  steam  into  this  compartment  we  can 
soon  put  it  out." 

"It's  pretty  close  to  my  box,"  commented  Tom, 
"but  there  isn't  as  much  danger  as  I  thought." 

It  did  not  take  him  and  the  officer  long  to  move 
the  box  away  from  its  proximity  to  the  fire,  for 
the  case  was  not  heavy,  though  it  was  of  good 
size,  and  then  the  officer  having  called  up  an 


A  NARROW  ESCAPE  71 

•jrder  to  some  of  his  fellow  seamen  on  deck,  a 
»x>pe  was  let  down,  and  the  box  hoisted  up. 

"Whew!  That  was  a  narrow  escape!"  ex- 
clamed  Tom  as  he  saw  his  case  go  up  on  deck. 
'"I  suppose  I  shouldn't  have  had  that  stored  here. 
But  there  were  so  many  things  to  think  of  that 
I  forgot." 

"Yes,  it  was  a  risk,"  commented  the  officer. 
*But  what  are  you  going  to  do  with  that  sort  of 
stuff,  anyhow?" 

"I  may  need  it  when  we  get  among  the  wild 
tribes  of  South  American  Indians,"  answered 
Tom  non-commitally.  "I'm  much  obliged  for 
your  help. " 

"Oh,  that's  nothing.  Anything  to  save  the 
ship." 

At  that  moment  there  were  confused  cries,  and 
a  series  of  shouts  and  commands  up  on  deck. 

"We'd  better  hurry  out  of  here,"  said  the  of- 
ficer. 

"Why?" 

"The  captain  has  just  ordered  steam  turned  in 
here.  I  hope  there  isn't  anything  of  yours  that 
will  be  damaged  by  it." 

"No,  everything  else  is  in  waterproof  cover- 
ings. Come  on,  we'll  climb  out." 

They  hurried  from  the  compartment  and,  a 
little  later  clouds  of  quenching  steam  were  poured 


72  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

in  from  a  hose  run  from  the  boiler  room.  The 
hatch  was  battened  down,  and  then  the  smoke 
ceased  to  come  up. 

"The  danger  is  practically  over,"  the  captain 
assured  the  frightened  passengers.  "The  fire 
will  be  all  out  by  morning.  You  may  go  to  your 
staterooms  in  perfect  safety/' 

Some  did,  and  others,  disbelieving,  hung 
around  the  hatch-cover,  sniffing  and  peering  to 
discover  traces  of  smoke.  But  the  sailors  had 
done  their  work  well,  and  a  stranger  would  not 
have  known  that  a  fire  was  in  the  hold. 

The  captain  had  spoken  truly,  and  in  the  morn- 
ing the  fire  was  completely  out,  a  few  charred 
bales  of  cotton  being  the  only  things  damaged. 
They  were  hauled  up  and  dumped  into  the  sea, 
while  Tom,  making  a  hasty  inspection  of  hi? 
other  goods  placed  in  that  compartment  saw,  to 
his  relief,  that  beyond  one  case  of  trinket,  de- 
signed for  barter  with  the  natives,  nothing  had 
been  damaged,  and  even  the  trinkets  could  be 
used  on  a  pinch. 

"But  what  was  in  that  box?"  asked  Ned,  that 
night  as  they  got  ready  to  retire,  the  excitement 
having  calmed  down. 

"Hush!  Not  so  loud,"  cautioned  Tom,  for 
Mr.  Damon  was  in  the  next  stateroom,  while 
Eradicate  had  one  across  the  corridor.  "Ill  tell 


A  NARROW  ESCAPE  73 

you,  Ned,  but  don't  breathe  a  word  of  it  to  Rad 
or  Mr.  Damon.  'They  might  not  intend  to  give 
it  away,  but  I'm  afraid  they  would,  if  they  knew, 
and  I  depend  on  the  things  in  that  box  to  give 
the  native  giants  the  surprise  of  their  lives  in 
case  we — well,  in  case  we  come  to  close  quarters." 

"Close  quarters?" 

"Yes,  have  a  fight,  you  know,  or  in  case  they 
get  so  fond  of  us  that  they  won't  hear  of  letting 
us  go — in  other  words  if  they  make  us  captives." 

"Great  Scott,  Tom!  You  don't  think  they'll 
do  that,  do  you?" 

"No  telling,  but  if  they  do,  Ned,  I've  got  some 
things  in  that  box  that  will  make  them  wish  they 

hadn't.  It's  got "  and  Tom  leaned  forward 

and  whispered,  as  though  he  feared  even  the 
walls  would  hear. 

"Good!"  cried  his  chum!  "That's  the  stuff! 
No  wonder  you  thought  the  ship  might  be  dam- 
aged if  the  fire  got  to  that!" 

It  seemed  that  the  slight  fire  was  about  all  the 
iexcitement  destined  to  take  place  aboard  the 
Calaban,  for,  after  the  blaze  was  so  effectually 
quenched,  the  ship  slipped  along  through  the  calm 
seas,  and  it  was  actually  an  effort  to  kill  time  on 
the  part  of  the  passengers.  As  they  progressed 
further  south  the  weather  became  more  and  more 
warm,  until,  as  they  approached  the  equator^ 


74  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

every  one  put  on  the  lightest  garments  obtainable. 

" Crossing  the  line,"  was  the  signal  for  the 
usual  "stunts"  among  the  sailors.  "Neptune" 
came  aboard,  with  his  usual  sea-green  whiskers 
made  from  long  rope  ends,  and  with  his  trident 
much  in  evidence ;  and  there  was  plenty  of  horse- 
play which  the  passengers  very  much  enjoyed. 

Then,  as  the  tropical  region  was  left  behind, 
the  weather  became  more  bearable.  There  wen! 
one  or  two  storms,  but  they  were  of  no  conse- 
quence and  the  steamer  weathered  them  easily. 

Tom  and  his  friends  had  several  talks  with 
the  "Reverend  Josiah  Blinderpool,"  as  the  pre- 
tended clergyman  still  called  himself.  But  he  did 
not  obtrude  his  company  on  them,  and  though 
he  asked  many  questions  as  to  where  Tom  and 
his  party  were  going,  the  young  inventor,  with 
his  usual  caution  in  talking  to  strangers,  rather 
evaded  them. 

"Hang  it  all!  He's  as  close-mouthed  as  a 
clam,"  complained  "Mr.  Blinderpool"  to  himself 
one  day,  after  an  attempt  to  worm  something 
from  Tom.  "I'll  just  have  to  stick  close  to  him 
and  his  chum  to  get  a  line  on  where  they're  head- 
ing for.  And  I  must  find  out,  or  Waydell  will 
think  I'm  throwing  the  game." 

As  for  Tom  and  the  others,  they  gave  the 
seeming  clergyman  little  thought — that  is  unt3 


A  NARROW  ESCAPE  75 

one  day  when  something  happened.  Ned  had 
been  down  in  the  engine  room,  having  had  per- 
mission to  inspect  the  wonderful  machinery,  and, 
on  his  way  back  he  passed  the  smoking  cabin. 
He  was  rather  surprised  to  see  Mr.  BHnderpool 
in  there,  puffing  on  a  big  black  cigar,  and  with 
him  were  some  men  whom  Ned  recognized  as 
personages  who  had  vainly  endeavored  to  get  a 
number  of  passengers  into  a  card  game  with 
them.  And,  unless  Ned's  eyes  deceived  him,  the 
seeming  clergyman  was  about  to  indulge  in  a 
game  himself. 

"That's  mighty  queer,"  mused  Ned.  "Guess 
111  tell  Tom  about  this.  I  never  saw  a  minister 
play  cards  in  public  before,  and  this  Mr.  Blinder- 
pool  has  been  trying  to  get  thick  with  Tom,  of 
late.  Maybe  he's  a  gambler  in  disguise." 

Filled  with  this  thought  Ned  hastened  off  to 
warn  his  chum. 


CHAPTER  IX 
"FORWARD  MARCH  !" 

"You  don't  say  so!"  exclaimed  the  young  in- 
ventor, when  Ned  had  told  him  the  queer  news. 
"Well,  do  you  know  I've  been  suspicious  of  that 
fellow  ever  since  he  tried  to  make  friends  with 


us." 


"Suspicious?  How  so?  You  don't  think — — * 

"Oh,  I  mean  I  think  he's  some  kind  of  a  con- 
fidence man  who  has  adopted  the  respectable 
clothes  of  a  minister  to  fool  people.  He  may  be 
a  card  sharper  himself.  Well,  we  won't  have 
anything  more  to  do  with  him.  It  won't  be  long 
before  we  arrive  at  Buenos  Ay  res,  and  then  we 
won't  be  bothered  with  card  sharpers  or  any- 
body else  but " 

"Giants  and  fighting  natives,"  finished  Ned, 
with  a  laugh.  "You  forget,  Tom,  that  there's 
a  war  going  on  near  the  very  place  we're  headed 
for." 

"That's  so,  Ned.  But  with  what  we  have  with 
us  I  guess  we  can  make  out  all  right.  I'm  going 

76 


"FORWARD  MARCH!"  77 

to  have  tne  electric  rifles  handy  the  minute  we 
start  for  the  interior." 

The  voyage  continued,  and  was  fast  drawing 
to  a  close.  "Mr.  Blinderpool"  made  several  more 
attempts  to  strike  up  a  friendship  with  Tom,  of 
his  chum,  but  they  were  on  their  guard  now,  and, 
failing  to  get  into  much  of  a  conversation  with 
the  two  young  men,  the  pretended  clergyman 
turned  his  attentions  to  Mr.  Damon. 

That  eccentric  gentleman  welcomed  him  at  first, 
until  a  quiet  hint  from  Tom  brought  that  to  an 
end. 

"Bless  my  fire  shovel!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
"You  don't  say  so!  Not  a  clergyman  at  all? 
Dear  me!" 

And  then,  getting  desperate,  and  needing  very 
much  to  learn  how  long  a  journey  his  rivals  were 
to  undertake,  so  that  he,  too,  might  prepare  for 
it,  Mr.  Hank  Delby,  alias  Blinderpool,  began  to 
"pump"  Eradicate. 

But  the  latter  was  too  sharp  for  him.  Well 
knowing  that  a  white  man  would  not  get  sud- 
denly friendly  with  one  of  the  black  race  unless 
for  some  selfish  object,  Eradicate  fairly  snubbed 
the  seeming  minister,  until  that  worthy  had  to 
go  off  by  himself,  saying  bitter  things  and  cast- 
ing black  looks  at  our  friends. 

"But  I'll  get  ahead  of  them  yet!"  he  muttered. 


78  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"and  Pll  get  their  giants  away  from  them,  if 
thev  capture  any." 

The  box  on  which  Tom  set  such  an  importance, 
and  which  had  so  nearly  been  the  cause  of  a  dis- 
aster, had  been  stored  in  one  of  the  fire-proof 
compartments  of  the  ship,  and  now,  as  a  few 
days  more  would  see  the  vessel  entering  the  har- 
bor of  the  Rio  de  la  Plata,  thence  to  steam  up 
to  the  ancient  city  of  Buenos  Ayres,  Tom  and 
the  others  began  to  think  of  what  lay  before 
them. 

"How  do  you  propose  to  head  into  the  in- 
terior?" asked  Mr.  Damon  one  afternoon,  when 
the  captain  announced  that  the  following  morn- 
ing would  see  them  nearly  opposite  Montevideo. 

"I'm  going  to  hire  a  lot  of  burrows,  donkeys 
or  whatever  they  have  down  here  that  answers 
the  purpose,"  replied  Tom.  "We  have  a  lot  of 
things  to  transport,  and  I  guess  pack  mules  would 
be  the  best,  if  we  can  get  them.  Then  I've  got 
to  hire  some  drivers  and  some  porters,  camp- 
makers  and  the  like.  In  fact  we'll  have  quite  a 
party.  I  guess  I'll  need  ten  natives,  and  a  head 
man  and  with  ourselves  we'll  be  fifteen.  So 
we'll  need  plenty  of  food.  But  then  we  can  get 
that  as  we  go  along,  except  when  we  get  away 
into  the  interior,  and  then  we'll  have  to  hunt  it 
ourselves." 


"FORWARD  MARCH!"  79 

"That's  the  stuff!"  cried  Ned.  "We  haven't 
had  a  good  hunting  expedition  since  we  went  tc 
elephant  land,  Tom.  The  electric  rifles  will 
come  in  handy  here." 

"Yes,  I  expect  they  will.  Now  come  on,  Ned, 
and  help  me  get  a  list  ready  of  the  things  we've 
got  to  take  with  us,  and  how  they  can  best  be 
divided  up." 

Thick  weather  delayed  the  ship  somewhat,  so 
it  was  not  until  evening  of  the  next  day  that  they 
made  Montevideo,  where  part  of  the  cargo  was 
to  be  discharged.  As  they  would  lay  over  there 
a  day,  the  boys  decided  to  go  ashore,  which  they 
did,  wondering  at  the  strange  sights  in  the  old 
city. 

Tom  watched  to  see  if  the  pretended  minister 
would  land,  and  endeavor  to  force  his  acquaint- 
ance, but  Mr.  Hank  Delby,  to  give  him  his  right 
name,  was  not  in  evidence.  In  fact  he  was  turn- 
ing over  scheme  after  scheme  in  his  mind  in  order 
to  hit  on  one  that  would  enable  him  to  take  ad- 
vantage of  the  preparations  which  had  been  made 
by  his  rival  in  the  circus  business. 

"I've  just  got  to  get  a  line  on  where  those » 
giants  are  to  be  found,"  mused  Mr.  Delby,  in  the 
seclusion  of  his  stateroom,  "even  if  I  have  to 
take  some  other  disguise  and  follow  that  Swift 
crowd.  That's  what  I'll  do.  I'll  put  on  some 


g0  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

other  disguise!    I  wonder  what  it  had  better  be?" 

Tom  and  Ned,  to  say  nothing  of  Mr.  Damon 
and  Eradicate,  found  much  to  interest  them  in 
the  capital  of  Uruguay,  and  they  were  rather 
sorry,  in  a  way,  when  it  was  time  for  them  to 
leave. 

"But  we'll  see  plenty  more  strange  sights," 
remarked  Tom,  as  the  steamer  started  off  for 
Buenos  Ay  res.  "In  fact  our  trip  hasn't  really 
begun  yet" 

In  due  time  they  dropped  anchor  at  the  ancient 
city,  and  then  began  a  series  of  confused  and 
busy  times.  In  fact  there  was  so  much  to  do, 
seeing  to  the  unloading  of  their  stuff,  arranging 
for  hotel  accommodations,  seeing  to  hiring  na- 
tives for  the  expedition  into  the  interior,  and 
other  details,  that  Tom  and  his  friends  had  no 
time  to  think  anything  about  the  pretended 
clergyman  who  had  caused  them  a  little  worry. 

Eventually  their  belongings  were  stored  in  a 
safe  place,  and  our  friends  sat  down  to  a  good 
dinner  in  a  hotel  that,  while  it  was  in  far-off 
South  America,  yet  was  as  good  as  many  in  New 
York,  and,  in  some  respects  the  boys,  and  Mr. 
Damon,  liked  it  better. 

They  found  that  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese 
languages  were  the  principal  ones  spoken,  togeth- 
er with  a  mixture  of  the  native  tongues,  and  as 


"FORWARD  MARCH!"  8l 

both  Ned  and  Tom,  as  well  as  Mr.  Damon,  had 
a  working  knowledge  of  Spanish  they  got  along 
fairly  well.  Some  of  the  hotel  people  could 
speak  English. 

Tom  made  inquiries  and  found  that  the  best 
plan  would  be  to  transport  all  his  stuff  by  the 
regular  route  to  Rosario,  on  the  Parana  river  in 
Argentina,  and  there  he  could  make  up  his  pack 
train,  hire  native  carriers,  and  start  for  the  in- 
terior. 

"Then  we'll  do  that,"  he  decided,  "and  take  it 
easy  until  we  get  to  Rosario." 

It  took  them  the  better  part  of  a  week  to  do 
this,  but  at  last  they  were  on  the  ground,  and 
felt  for  the  first  time  that  they  were  really  going 
into  a  wild  and  little  explored  country. 

"Are  you  going  to  stick  to  the  Parana  river?" 
asked  Ned. 

"No,"  replied  Tom,  in  the  seclusion  of  their 
room,  "if  there  are  any  giants  they  will  be  found 
in  some  undiscovered,  or  at  least  little  traveled, 
part  of  the  country.  I  don't  believe  they  are  in 
the  vicinity  of  the  big  rivers,  or  other  travelers 
would  have  heard  about  them,  and,  as  far  as  we 
know,  Mr.  Preston's  animal  agent  is  the  only  one 
who  ever  got  a  trace  of  them.  We'll  have  to  go 
into  the  jungle  on  either  side  of  the  river. 


S2  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Bless  my  walking  stick!"  cried  Mr.  Damoa 
"Have  we  really  to  go  into  the  jungle,  Tom?" 

"I'm  afraid  we  have,  if  we  want  to  get  any 
giants,  and  get  a  trace  of  Mr.  Poddington." 

"All  right,  I'm  game,  but  I  do  hope  we  won't 
run  into  a  band  of  fighting  natives." 

In  Rosario  it  was  learned  that  while  the  "war" 
was  not  regarded  seriously  from  the  fact  that 
the  fighting  tribes  were  far  inland,  still  it  was 
going  on  with  vigor,  and  large  bands  of  natives 
were  roaming  about,  stealing  each  others'  cattle 
and  horses,  burning  villages,  and  taking  captives. 

"I  guess  we're  in  for  it,"  remarked  Tom  grim- 
ly. "But  I'm  not  going  to  back  out  now." 

Unexpected  complications,  difficulties  in  the 
way  of  getting  the  right  kind  of  help,  and  a  com- 
petent man  to  take  charge  of  the  native  drivers, 
so  delayed  our  friends  that  it  was  nearly  two 
weeks  after  their  arrival  in  Rosario  before  they 
could  start  for  the  interior. 

Of  course  the  object  of  the  expedition  was 
kept  a  secret,  and  Tom  let  it  be  known  that  he  and 
his  friends  were  merely  exploring,  and  wanted 
rare  plants,  orchids,  or  anything  in  that  line. 
The  natives  were  not  very  curious. 

At  last  the  day  for  the  start  came.  The  mules, 
which  had  been  hired  as  beasts  of  l^rrdens,  were 
loaded  with  bcxes  or  bales  on  either  side,  the 


"FORWARD  MARCH!"  83 

natives  were  marshalled  into  line,  Tom,  Ned,  and 
Mr.  Damon,  each  equipped  with  a  rifle  had  a 
saddle  animal  to  ride,  and  Eradicate  was  sim- 
ilarly equipped,  though  for  a  weapon  he  depended 
on  a  shotgun,  which  he  said  he  understood  better 
than  the  electric  rifles. 

The  aeroplane,  divided  into  many  small  pack- 
ages, the  goods  for  barter,  their  supplies,  stores, 
ammunition,  and  the  box  of  which  Tom  took 
such  care — all  these  were  on  the  backs  of  the 
beasts  of  burden.  Some  food  was  taken  along, 
but  for  a  time,  at  least,  they  could  depend  on 
scattered  towns  or  villages,  or  the  forest  game, 
for  their  eating. 

"Are  we  all  ready?"  called  Tom,  looking  at 
the  rather  imposing  cavalcade  of  which  he  was 
the  head." 

"I  guess  so,"  replied  Ned.    "Let  her  go!" 

"Bless  my  liver  pad!"  gasped  Mr.  Damon.  "If 
we've  got  to  start  do  it,  and  let's  get  it  over  with 
Tom." 

"All  ready,  Rad?"  asked  the  colored  man's 
young  master. 

"All  ready,  Massa  Tom.  But  I  mus'  say  dat 
I'd  radder  hab  Boomerang  dan  dish  yeah  ani- 
mal what  I'm  ridin'." 

"Oh,  you'll  do  all  right,  Rad.  Then,  if  we're 
all  ready,  fonvard  march!"  cried  Tom,  and  with 


84  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

calls  to  their  animals,  the  drivers  started  them  off. 

Hardly  had  they  begun  the  advance  than  Ned, 
who  had  been  narrowly  watching  one  of  the 
natives,  hurried  up  to  Tom,  and  rapidly  whis- 
pered something  to  his  chum. 

"What?  cried  Tom.  "Armed  with  a  six-shoot- 
er, is  he?  Well,  we'll  see  about  that!  Halt!"  he 
cried  in  Spanish,  and  then  he  called  San  Pedro 
the  head  mule  driver,  to  him. 


CHAPTER   X 

A  WILD   HORSE  STAMPEDE 

"WHO  is  that  man?"  demanded  Tom  pointing 
to  the  one  Ned  had  indicated.  Tom's  chum  had 
had  a  glimpse  of  a  shining  revolver  in  the  hip 
pocket  of  one  of  the  mule  drivers,  and  knowing 
that  the  simple  natives  were  not  in  the  habit  of 
carrying  such  weapons,  the  lad  had  communi- 
cated his  suspicions  to  Tom. 

"What  man,  senor?"  asked  the  head  mule 
driver. 

"That  one!"  and  the  young  inventor  again 
pointed  toward  him.  And,  now  that  Tom  looked 
a  second  time  he  saw  that  the  man  was  not  as 
black  as  the  other  drivers — not  an  honest,  dark- 
skinned  black  but  more  of  a  sickly  yellow,  like  a 
treacherous  half-breed.  "Who  is  he?"  asked 
Tom,  for  the  man  in  question  was  just  then  tight" 
,ening  a  girth  and  could  not  hear  him. 

"I  know  not,  senor.  He  come  to  me  when  I 
am  hiring  the  others,  and  Tie  say  he  is  a  good 
driver.  And  so  he  is,  I  test  him  before  I  engage 


86  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

him,"  went  in  San  Pedro  in  Spanish.  "He  is 
one  good  driver." 

"Why  does  he  carry  a  revolver?" 

"A  revolver,  senor?  Santa  Maria,  I  know 
not!  I " 

"I'll  find  out,"  declared  Tom  determinedly. 
"Here,"  he  called  to  the  offending  one,  who 
straightened  up  quickly.  "Come  here!" 

The  man  came,  with  all  the  cringing  servility 
of  a  born  native,  and  bowed  low. 

"Why  have  you  a  weapon?"  asked  the  young 
inventor.  "I  gave  orders  that  none  of  the  drivers 
were  to  carry  them." 

"A  revolver,  senor?    I  have  none!    I " 

"Rad,  reach  in  his  pocket!"  cried  Tom,  and 
the  colored  man  did  so  with  a  promptness  that 
the  other  could  not  frustrate.  Eradicate  held 
aloft  a  large  calibre,  automatic  weapon. 

"What's  that  for?"  asked  Tom,  virtuously 
angry. 

"I — er — I "  and  then,  with  a  hopeless 

shrug  of  his  shoulders  the  man  turned  away. 

"Give  him  his  gun,  and  get  another  driver, 
San  Pedro,"  directed  our  hero,  and  with  another 
shrug  of  his  shoulders  the  man  accepted  the  re- 
volver, and  walked  slowly  off.  Another  driver 
was  not  hard  to  engage,  as  several  had  been 


A  WILD  HORSE  STAMPEDE  87 

hanging  about,  hoping  for  employment  at  the 
last  minute,  and  one  was  quickly  chosen. 

"It's  lucky  you  saw  that  gun,  Ned,"  remarked 
Tom,  when  they  were  actually  under  way  again. 

"Yes,  I  saw  the  sun  shining  on  it  as  his  coat 
flapped  up.  What  was  his  game,  do  you 
suppose?" 

"Oh,  he  might  be  what  they  call  a  'bad  half- 
breed'  down  here.  I  guess  maybe  he  thought  he 
could  lord  it  over  the  other  drivers  when  we  got 
out  in  the  jungle,  and  maybe  take  some  of  their 
wages  away  from  them,  or  have  things  easier  for 
himself."  " 

"Bless  my  wishbone!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Damon. 
"You  don't  think  he  meant  to  use  it  on  us,  Tom?" 

"Why  no?    What  makes  you  ask  that?" 

"Oh,  I'm  just  nervous,  I  guess,"  replied  the 
odd  man. 

But  if  Mr.  Damon  could  have  seen  that  same 
half-breed  a  little  later,  as  he  slipped  into  a  Ros- 
ario  resort,  with  the  yellow  stain  washed  from 
his  face,  the  nervousness  of  the  eccentric  gentle- 
>man  would  have  increased.  For  the  man  who 
had  been  detected  with  the  revolver  muttered  to 
himself: 

"Caught!  Well,  I'll  fool  'em  next  time  all 
right!  I  thought  I  could  get  away  with  the  pack 
train,  and  then  it  would  have  been  easy  to  tun* 


88  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

the  natives  any  way  I  wished,  after  I  had  found 
what  I'm  looking  for.  But  I  had  to  go  and  carry 
that  gun!  I  never  thought  they'd  spot  it.  Well, 
it's  all  up  now,  and  if  Way  dell  heard  of  it  he'd 
want  to  fire  me.  But  I'll  make  good  yet.  I'll 
have  to  adopt  some  other  disguise,  and  see  if  I 
can't  tag  along  behind." 

All  unconscious  of  the  plotter  they  had  left 
back  of  them,  Tom  and  his  companions  pushed 
on,  rapidly  leaving  such  signs  of  civilization  as 
were  represented  by  small  native  towns  and  vil- 
lages, and  coming  nearer  to  the  jungles  and  for- 
ests that  lay  between  them  and  the  place  where 
Tom  was  destined  to  be  made  a  captive. 

They  were  far  enough  away  from  the  tropics 
to  escape  the  intolerable  heat,  and  yet  it  was  quite 
warm.  In  fact  the  weather  was  not  at  all  un- 
pleasant, and,  once  they  were  started,  all  en- 
joyed the  novelty  of  the  trip. 

Tom  planned  to  keep  along  the  eastern  shore 
of  the  Parana  river,  until  they  reached  the  junc- 
tion where  the  Salado  joins  it.  Then  he  decided 
that  they  would  do  better  to  cross  the  Parana 
and  strike  into  the  big  triangle  made  by  that 
stream  and  its  principal  tributary,  heading  north 
toward  Bolivia. 

"For  it  is  in  that  little-explored  part  of  South 
America  that  I  think  the  giants  will  be  found." 


A  WILD  HORSE  STAMPEDE  89 

said  Tom,  as  he  talked  it  over  with  Ned  and  Mr. 
Damon  in  the  privacy  of  their  tent,  which  had 
been  set  up. 

"But  why  should  there  be  giants  there  any 
more  than  anywhere  else?"  asked  Ned. 

"No  particular  reason,"  answered  his  chum. 
**But,  according  to  the  last  word  Mr.  Preston 
had  from  his  agent,  that  was  where  he  was  head- 
ing for,  and  that's  where  Zacatas,  his  native 
helper,  said  he  lost  track  of  his  master.  I  have  a 
theory  that  the  giants,  if  we  find  any,  will  turn 
out  to  be  a  branch  of  a  Patagonian  tribe." 

"Patagonians!"  exclaimed  Ned. 

"Yes.  You  know  the  natives  of  the  Southern 
part  of  Argentina  grow  to  a  considerable  size. 
Now  Patagonia  is  a  comparatively  bleak  and  cold 
country.  What  would  prevent  some  of  that  big 
tribe  centuries  ago,  from  having  migrated  to  a 
warmer  country,  where  life  was  more  favorable? 
After  several  generations  they  may  have  grown 
to  be  giants." 

"Bravo!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Damon.  "It's  a  good 
theory,  at  any  rate,  Tom.  Though  whether  you 
can  ever  prove  it  is  a  question." 

"Yes,  and  a  big  one,"  agreed  the  young  in- 
ventor with  a  laugh. 

For  some  days  they  traveled  along  over  a 
comparatively  flat  country,  bordering  the  river. 


C)0  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

At  times  they  would  pass  through  small  native 
villages,  where  they  would  be  able  to  get  fresh 
meat,  poultry  and  other  things  that  varied  their 
bill  of  fare.  Again  there  would  be  long,  lonely 
stretches  of  forest  or  jungle,  through  which  it 
was  difficult  to  make  their  way.  And,  occasional- 
ly they  would  come  to  fair-sized  towns  where 
their  stay  was  made  pleasant. 

"I  doan't  see  any  ob  dem  oranges  an'  bananas 
droppin'  inter  mah  mouf,  Massa  Tom,"  com- 
plained Eradicate  one  day,  after  they  had  been  on 
the  march  for  over  a  week. 

"Have  patience,  Rad,"  advised  Tom.  "We'll 
come  to  them  when  we  get  a  little  farther  into 
the  interior.  First  we'll  come  to  the  monkeys, 
and  the  cocoanut  trees." 

"Hones'   Massa  Tom?" 

"Surely." 

And  though  it  was  pretty  far  south  for  the 
nimble  simians,  the  next  day  they  did  come  upon 
a  drove  of  them  skipping  about  in  the  tall  palm 
trees. 

"There  they  are,  Rad!  There  they  are!"  cried 
Ned,  as  the  chattering  of  the  monkeys  filled  the 
forest. 

"By  golly!  So  dey  be!  Heah's  where  I  get 
some  cocoanuts!" 

Before    anyone    could    stop    him,    Eradicate 


A  WILD  HORSE  STAMPEDE  91 

caught  tip  a  dead  branch,  and  threw  it  at  a  mon- 
key. The  chattering  increased,  and  almost  in- 
stantly a  shower  of  cocoanuts  came  crashing 
down,  narrowly  missing  some  of  our  friends. 

"Holdon,Rad!  Hold  on! "cried Tom.  "Some 
of  us  will  be  hurt!" 

Crack!  came  a  cocoanut  down  on  the  skull  of 
the  colored  man. 

"Bless  my  court  plaster!  Someone's  hurt 
now!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 

"Hurt?  Bless  yo'  heart,  Massa  Damon,  it  takes 
mo'  dan  dat  t*  hurt  dish  yeah  chile!"  cried  Erad- 
icate with  a  grin.  "Ah  got  a  hard  head,  Ah  has, 
mighty  hard  head,  an'  de  cocoanut  ain't  growed 
dat  kin  bust  it.  Thanks,  Mistah  Monkey, 
thanks!"  and  with  a  langh  Eradicate  jumped  off 
his  mule,  and  began  gathering  up  the  nuts,  while 
the  monkeys  fled  into  the  forest. 

"Very  much  good  to  drink  milk,"  said  San 
Pedro,  as  he  picked  up  a  half-ripe  nut,  and  showed 
how  to  chop  off  the  top  with  a  big  knife  and  drain 
the  slightly  acid  juice  inside.  "Very  much  £0od 
for  thirst."  ^ 

"Let's  try  it^"  Proposed  Tom,  and  they  all 
drank  their  fill,  for  there  were  many  cocoanuts, 
though  it  was  rather  an  isolated  grove  of  them. 

The  monkevs  became  more  numerous  as  they 
proceeded  farther  north  toward  the  equator,  for 


92  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

it  must  be  remembered  that  they  had  landed  south 
of  it,  and  at  times  the  little  animals  became  a  pos- 
itive nuisance. 

Several  days  passed,  and  they  crossed  the  Par- 
ana river  and  struck  into  the  almost  unpenetrated 
tract  of  land  where  Tom  hoped  to  find  the  giants. 
As  yet  none  of  their  escort  dreamed  of  the  ob- 
ject of  the  expedition,  and  though  Tom  had 
caused  scouts  to  be  sent  back  over  their  trail  to 
learn  if  they  were  being  followed  there  was  no 
trace  of  any  one. 

One  day,  after  a  night  camp  on  the  edge  of  a 
rather  high  table  land,  they  started  across  a  fer- 
tile plain  that  was  covered  with  a  rich  growth  of 
grass. 

"Good  grazing  ground  here,"  commented  Ned. 

"Yes,"  put  in  San  Pedro.  "Plenty  much  horse 
here  pretty  soon." 

"Do  the  natives  graze  their  herds  of  horse? 
here?"  asked  Tom. 

"No  natives — wild  horses,"  explained  Pedro 
"Plenty  much,  sometimes  too  many  they  come. 
You  see.  maybe. " 

'it  was  nearly  noon,  and  Tom  was  consider- 
ing stopping  for  dinner  if  they  could  come  to  a 
good  watering  place,  when  Ned,  who  had  ridden 
slightly  in  advance,  came  galloping  back  as  fast 
as  his  steed  would  carry  him. 


A   WILD  HORSE  STAMPEDE  93 

"Look  out!  Look  out!"  he  cried.  "There's  a 
stampede  of  'em,  and  they're  headed  right  this 
way!" 

"Stampede  of  what?  Who's  headed  this  way?" 
cried  Tom.  "A  lot  of  monkeys?" 

"No,  wild  horses!  Thousands  of  'em!  Hear 
'em  coming?" 

In  the  silence  that  followed  Ned's  warning 
there  could  be  heard  a  dull,  roaring,  thundering 
sound,  and  the  earth  seemed  to  tremble. 

"The  young  senor  speaks  truth!  Wild  horses 
are  coming!"  cried  San  Pedro.  "Get  ready,  sen- 
ors !  Have  your  weapons  at  hand,  and  perchance 
we  can  turn  the  stampede  aside." 

"The  rifles!  The  electric  rifles,  Ned— Mr. 
Damon!  We've  got  to  stop  them,  or  they'll 
trample  us  to  death!"  cried  Tom. 

As  he  spoke  the  thundering  became  louder,  and 
then,  looking  across  the  grassy  plain,  all  saw  a 
large  troop  of  wild  horses,  with  flying  manes  and 
tails,  headed  directly  toward  them! 


CHAPTER  XI 

CAUGHT  IN  A  LIVING  ROPE 

"QUICK!  Peg  out  the  mules!"  cried  San 
Pedro,  after  one  look  at  the  onrushing  horses. 
"Drive  the  stakes  well  down!  Tie  them  fast  and 
then  get  behind  those  rocks!  Lively!" 

He  cried  his  orders  to  the  natives  in  Spanish, 
at  the  same  time  motioning  to  Tom  and  Ned. 

"Get  off  your  mules !"  he  went  on.  "Peg  them 
out.  Peg  out  the  others,  and  then  run  for  it!" 

"Run  for  it?  repeated  Tom.  "Do  you  think 
I'm  going  to  leave  my  outfit  in  the  midst  of  that 
stampede?"  and  he  waved  his  hand  toward  the 
thundering,  galloping  wild  horses  which  were 
coming  nearer  every  moment.  "Get  out  the  elec- 
tric rifles,  and  we'll  turn  that  stampede.  I'm  not 
going  to  run." 

"Bless  my  saddle!"  cried  Mr.  Damon.  "This 
is  awful!  There  must  be  a  thousand  of  them." 

"Nearer  two!"  cri^d  Ned.  who  was  struggling 
tc  loosen  the  straps  that  bound  his  electric  rifle 
to  the  side  of  his  mule.  Already  the  pack  animals 


CAUGHT  IN  A  LIVING  ROPE  95 

as  well  as  those  ridden  by  the  members  of  the 
giant-hunting  party  were  showing  signs  of  excite- 
ment. They  seemed  to  want  to  join  the  stam- 
peding horses. 

"Peg  our  animals  out!  Peg  them  out!  Make 
them  so  they  can't  join  the  others!"  yelled  San- 
Pedro.  "It's  our  only  chance!" 

"I  believe  he's  right!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
"Tom,  if  we  wait  until  those  maddened  brutes 
are  up  to  us  they'll  fairly  sweep  ours  along  with 
them,  and  there's  no  telling  where  we'll  end  up. 
I  think  we'd  better  follow  his  advice  and  tie  our 
mules  as  strongly  as  we  can.  Then  we  can  go 
over  there  by  the  rocks,  and  fire  at  the  wild 
horses.  We  may  be  able  to  turn  them  aside." 

"Guess  that's  right,"  agreed  the  young  inventor 
after  a  moment's  thought.  "Come  on,  Ned.  Peg 
out!" 

"Peg  out!  Peg  out!"  yelled  the  natives,  and 
then  began  a  lively  scene.  Pegging  stakes  were 
in  readiness,  and,  attached  to  the  bridle  of  each 
mule  was  a  strong,  rawhide  rope  for  tying  to  the 
stake.  The  pegs  were  driven  deeply  into  the 
ground  and  in  a  trice  the  animals  were  made  fast 
to  them,  though  they  snorted,  and  tried  to  pull 
away  as  they  heard  the  neighing  of  the  stamped- 
ing animals  and  saw  them  coming  on  with  an 
irresistible  rush. 


96  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Hurry!"  begged  San  Pedro,  and  hurry  Tom, 
Ned  and  the  others  did.  Animal  after  animal 
was  made  fast — that  is  all  but  one  and  that  bore 
on  its  back  two  rather  large  but  light  boxes — the 
contents  of  the  case  which  Tom  had  rescued  from 
the  fire  in  the  hold. 

"What  are  you  going  to  do  with  mule?"  asked 
Ned,  as  he  saw  Tom  begin  to  lead  the  anima1 
away,  the  others  having  been  pegged  out 

"I'm  going  to  take  him  over  to  the  rocks  with 
me.  I'm  not  going  to  take  any  chances  on  this 
mule  getting  away  with  those  things  in  the  boxes. 
Give  me  a  hand  here,  and  then  we'll  see  what  the 
electric  rifles  will  do  against  those  horses. " 

But  the  one  mule  which  Tom  had  elected  to 
take  with  him  seemed  to  resent  being  separated 
from  his  companions.  Bracing  his  feet  well  apart, 
the  animal  stubbornly  refused  to  move. 

"Come  on!"  yelled  Tom,  pulling  on  the  leading 
rope. 

"Bless  my  porous  plaster!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
" You'd  better  hurry,  Tom!  Those  wild  horses 
are  almost  on  us!" 

,  "I'm  trying  to  hurry!"  replied  the  youn^  in- 
ventor, "but  this  mule  won't  come.  Ned,  get 
behind  and  shove,  will  you?" 

"Not  much!     I  don't  want  to  be  kicked." 

"Beat  him!     Strike  him!     Wait  until  I  get  £ 


CAUGHT  IN  A  LIVING  ROPE  97 

club!"  yelled  San  Pedro.  "Come,  Antonia, 
Selka,  Balaka!"  he  cried,  to  several  of  the  natives 
who  had  already  started  for  the  sheltering  rocks 
a  short  distance  away.  "Beat  the  mule  for  Senor 
Swift!" 

Ned  joined  Tom  at  the  leading  rope,  and  the 
two  lads  tried  to  pull  the  animal  along.  Mr. 
Damon  rushed  over  to  lend  his  aid,  and  San 
Pedro,  catching  up  a  long  stick,  was  about  to 
bring  it  down  on  the  mule's  back.  Meanwhile 
the  stampeding  animals  were  rushing  nearer. 

"Hold  on  dere,  Massa  Tom!"  suddenly  called 
Eradicate.  "Yo'-all  done  flustered  dat  mule, 
dat's  what  yo'  done.  Yo'-all  am  too  much  ex- 
cited 'bout  him.  Be  calm!  Be  calm!" 

"Calm!  With  that  bunch  of  wild  animals 
bearing  down  on  us?"  shouted  Tom.  "Let's  see 
you  be  calm,  Rad.  Come  on  here,  you  obstinate 
brute!"  he  cried,  straining  on  the  rope. 

"Let  me  do  it,  Massa  Tom.  Let  me  do  it." 
suggested  the  colored  man  hurrying  to  the  balky 
beast. 

Then,  as  gently  as  if  he  was  talking  to  a  ner- 
vous child,  and  totally  oblivious  to  the  danger  of 
the  approaching  horses,  Eradicate  went  up  to  the 
mule's  head,  rubbed  its  ears  until  they  pointed 
naturally  once  more,  murmured  something  to  it, 
and  then,  taking  the  rope  from  Ned  and  Tom, 


98  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

Eradicate  led  the  mule  along  toward  the  rocks 
as  easily  as  if  there  had  never  been  any  question 
about  going  there. 

"For  the  love  of  tripe!  How  did  you  do  it?" 
asked  Tom. 

"Bless  my  peck  of  oats!"  gasped  Mr.  Damon. 
"It's  a  good  thing  we  had  Rad  along!" 

"All  mules  am  alike,"  said  the  colored  man 
with  a  grin.  "An  dish  yeah  one  ain't  much 
different  from  mah  Boomerang.  I  guess  he's  a 
sorter  cousin." 

"Come  on!"  yelled  San  Pedro.  "No  time  to 
lose.  Make  for  the  rocks!" 

Tom,  Ned  and  Mr.  Damon  sprinted  then,  and 
there  was  need  to,  for  the  foremost  of  the  gallop- 
ing horses  was  not  a  hundred  feet  away.  Then 
came  Eradicate,  leading  the  mule  that  had  at  last 
consented  to  hurry.  The  natives,  with  San  Pedro, 
were  already  at  the  rocks,  waiting  for  the  white 
hunters  with  the  deadly  electric  rifles. 

"If  they  stampede  our  mules  we'll  be  in  a 
pickle!"  murmured  Ned. 

"I  guess  those  ropes  will  hold  unless  they  bite 
them  through,"  remarked  Tom. 

"Yes,  they  sure  hold,"  cried  San  Pedro,  and 
indeed  one  had  to  shout  now  to  be  heard  above 
the  thundering  of  the  horses.  Now  the  tethered 


CAUGHT  IN  A  LIVING  ROPE  99 

mules  were  lost  to  sight  in  the  mulitude  of  the 
other  steeds  all  about  them. 

"Come  on,  Ned!"  yelled  Tom,  as  he  sighted 
his  rifle.  "Pump  it  into  them!  We  must  turn 
them,  or  they  may  come  over  this  way,  and  if 
they  do  it  will  be  all  up  with  us." 

"Shoot  to  kill?"  asked  Ned,  as  he  drew  back 
the  firing  lever  of  his  electric  rifle. 

"No,  only  a  stunning  charge.  Those  horses 
are  valuable,  and  there's  no  use  killing  them. 
All  we  want  to  do  is  to  turn  them  aside." 

"That's  right,"  agreed  Mr.  Damon,  forgetting 
in  the  excitement  of  the  moment  to  bless  himself 
or  anything.  "We'll  only  stun  them." 

The  rifles  were  quickly  adjusted  to  send  out  a 
comparatively  weak  charge  of  electricity,  and 
then  they  were  trained  on  the  dense  mass  of 
horses,  while  the  three  marksmen  began  working 
the  firing  levers. 

At  first,  though  horse  after  horse  fell  to  the 
ground,  stunned,  there  was  no  appreciable  effect 
on  the  thousands  in  the  drove.  The  poor  mules 
were  hidden  from  sight,  though  by  reason  of 
divisions  in  the  living  stream  of  animals  it  could 
still  be  told  where  they  were  tethered,  and  where 
the  horses  separated  to  go  past  them.  Fortun- 
ately the  ropes  and  pegs  held. 

"Fire  faster!"  cried  Tom.     "Shoot  across  the 


100  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

front  of  them,  and  try  to  turn  them  to  one  side." 

From  the  rocks,  behind  which  the  natives  and 
our  friends  crouched,  there  came  a  steady  stream 
of  electric  fire.  Horse  after  horse  went  down, 
stunned  but  not  badly  hurt,  and  in  a  few  hours 
the  beasts  would  feel  no  ill  effects.  The  firing 
was  redoubled,  and  then  there  came  a  break  in  the 
steady  stream  of  horseflesh. 

Some  hesitated  and  sought  to  turn  back. 
Others,  behind,  pressed  them  on,  and  then,  as  if 
in  fear  at  the  unknown  and  unseen  power  that 
was  laying  low  animal  after  animal,  the  great 
body,  of  horses,  suddenly  turned  at  right  angles 
to  their  course  and  broke  away.  There  were  now 
two  bodies  of  the  wild  runaways,  those  that  had 
passed  the  tethered  mules,  and  those  that  had 
swung  off.  The  stampede  had  been  broken. 

"That's  the  stuff!"  cried  Tom,  jumping  up 
from  behind  the  rocks,  and  swinging  his  hat. 
"We've  turned  them." 

"And  just  in  time,  too,"  added  Ned,  as  he 
joined  his  chum.  Then  all  the  others  leaped  up, 
and  the  sight  of  the  human  beings  completed  the 
scare.  The  stampeding  animals  swung  off  more 
than  before,  so  that  they  were  nearly  doubling 
back  on  their  own  trail.  The  others  thundered 
off,  and  the  ground  was  strewn  with  unconscious 
Itfiough  unharmed  animals. 


CAUGHT  IN  A  LIVING  ROPE  ioi 

"One  mule  gone!"  cried  San  Pedro,  hastily 
counting  the  still  tethered  animals  which  were 
wildly  tugging  at  their  ropes. 

"Never  mind,"  spoke  Tom,  "it's  the  one  with 
some  of  that  damaged  bartering  stuff  I  intended 
for  trading.  We  can  afford  to  lose  that.  Rad, 
is  your  animal  all  right?" 

"He  suah  am,  Massa  Tom.  Dish  yeah  mule 
am  almost  as  sensible  as  Boomerang,  ain't  yo'?" 
and  Eradicate  patted  the  big  animal  he  was  lead- 
ing. 

"I'll  send  a  man  down  the  trail,  and  maybe  he 
can  pick  up  the  missing  one,"  said  San  Pedro, 
and  while  the  other  natives  were  quieting  the 
restless  mules,  one  tall  black  man  hastened  in  the 
tvake  of  the  retreating  horses. 

He  came  back  in  an  hour  with  the  missing 
animal,  that  had  broken  its  tether  rope  and  then, 
after  running  along  with  the  wild  horses  had 
evidently  dropped  out  of  the  drove.  Aside  from 
the  loss  of  a  small  box,  there  had  been  no  dam- 
age done,  and  the  cavalcade  was  soon  under  way 
once  more,  leaving  the  motionless  horses  to  re* 
cover  from  the  effects  of  the  electricity. 

"Bless  my  saddle  pad!"  cried  Mr.  Damon.  "I 
don't  think  I  want  to  go  through  anything  like 
that  again." 


102  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Neither  do  I,"  agreed  Tom.  "We  are  well 
out  of  it." 

"How  much  you  take  for  one  of  them  rifles?" 
asked  San  Pedro  admiringly. 

"Not  for  sale,"  answered  Tom  with  a  laugh. 

They  camped  in  a  fertile  valley  that  night,  and 
had  a  much-needed  rest.  As  yet  Tom  had  made 
no  inquiries  as  to  the  location  of  giant  land  from 
any  of  the  natives  of  the  villages  or  towns 
through  which  they  passed.  He  knew  as  soon  as 
he  did  begin  asking  questions,  his  own  men  would 
hear  of  it,  and  they  might  be  frightened  if  they 
knew  they  were  in  an  expedition  the  object  of 
which  was  to  capture  some  of  the  tall  men. 

"We'll  just  go  along  for  a  few  days  more," 
said  Tom,  to  Ned,  "and  then,  when  I  do  spring 
my  surprise,  they'll  be  so  far  from  home  that 
they  won't  dare  turn  back.  In  a  few  days  I'll 
begin  making  inquiries." 

They  traveled  on  for  three  days  more,  ever 
heading  north,  and  coming  more  into  the  warmer 
climate.  The  vegetation  began  to  take  on  a  more, 
tropical  look,  and  finally  they  reached  a  region 
infested  with  many  wild  beasts  and  monkeys, 
and  with  patches  of  dense  jungle  on  either  side 
of  the  narrow  trail.  Fruits,  tropical  flowers  and 
birds  abounded. 

"I  think  we're  getting  there,"  remarked  Tom. 


CAUGHT  IN  A  LIVING  ROPE  103 

on  the  evening  of  the  third  day  after  his  talk  with 
Ned  "San  Pedro  says  there's  quite  a  village 
about  half  a  day's  march  ahead,  and  I  may  learn 
something  there.  I'll  know  by  to-morrow 
whether  we  are  on  the  right  trail  or  not." 

The  natives  were  getting  supper,  and  Eradi- 
cate was  busy  with  a  meal  for  the  three  white 
hunters.  Mr.  Damon  had  strolled  down  to  the 
bank  of  a  little  stream,  and  was  looking  at  some 
small  animals  like  foxes  that  had  come  for  their 
evening  drink.  They  seemed  quite  fearless. 

Suddenly  something  long,  round  and  thick 
seemed  to  drop  down  out  of  a  tree  close  to  the 
odd  gentleman.  So  swift  and  noiseless  was  it 
that  Mr.  Damon  never  noticed  it.  Then,  like  a 
flash  something  went  around  him,  and  he  let  out 
a  scream  of  terror. 

San  Pedro,  who  was  nearest  to  him,  saw  and 
heard.  The  next  instant  the  black  muleteer  came 
rushing  toward  the  camp,  crying: 

"He  is  caught  in  a  rope!  Mr.  Damon  is  caught 
in  a  rope !" 

"A  rope!"  repeated  Ned,  not  understanding. 

"Yes,  a  rope  in  a  tree.    Come  quickly!" 

Tom  caught  up  one  of  the  electric  rifles  and 
rushed  forward.  No  sooner  had  he  set  eyes  on 
his  friend,  who  was  writhing  about  in  the  folds 


104  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

of  what  looked  like  a  big  ship  cable,  then  tfie 
young  inventor  cried: 

"A  rope!  Yes,  a  living  rope!  That's  a  big 
boa  constrictor  that  has  Mr.  Damon !  Get  a  gun, 
Ned,  and  follow  me !  We  must  save  him  before 
he  is  crushed  to  death!" 

And  the  two  lads  rushed  forward  while  the 
living  rope  drew  its  folds  tighter  and  tighter 
about  the  unfortunate  man. 


CHAPTER  XII 

A   NATIVE   BATTLE 

"BLESS  my !"  but  that  was  as  far  as  poor 

Mr.  Damon  could  get.  The  breath  was  fairly 
squeezed  out  of  him  by  the  folds  of  the  great 
serpent  that  had  dropped  down  out  of  the  tree 
to  crush  him  to  death.  His  head  fell  forward  on 
his  breast,  and  his  arms  were  pinioned  to  his 
sides. 

"Quick,  Ned!"  cried  Tom.  "We  must  fire 
together!  Be  careful  not  to  hit  Mr.  Damon!" 

"That's  right.  I'll  take  the  snake  on  one  side, 
Tom,  and  you  on  the  other!" 

"No!  Then  we  might  hit  each  other.  Come 
on  my  side.  Aim  for  the  head,  and  throw  in  the 
highest  charge.  We  want  to  kill,  not  stun!" 

"Right!"  gasped  Ned,  as  he  ran  forward  at 
his  chum's  side. 

San  Pedro,  and  the  other  natives,  could  da 
nothing.     In  the  gathering  twilight,  broken  b\ 
the  light  of  several  campfires,  they  stood  helpless 
watching  the  two  plucky  youths  advance  to  dc 

105 


106  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

battle  with  the  serpent.  Eradicate  had  caught 
up  a  club,  and  had  dashed  forward  to  do  what  he 
could,  but  Tom  motioned  him  back. 

"We  can  manage,"  spoke  the  young  inventor. 

Then  he  and  Ned  crept  on  with  ready  rifles. 
The  snake  raised  its  ugly  head  and  hissed, 
ceasing  for  a  moment  to  constrict  its  coils  about 
the  unfortunate  man. 

"Now's  our  chance — fire!"  hoarsely  whispered 
Ned. 

It  seemed  as  if  the  big  snake  heard,  foi ,  rais- 
ing its  head  still  higher,  it  fairly  glared  at  Ned 
and  Tom.  It  was  the  very  chance  they  wanted, 
for  they  could  now  fire  without  the  danger  of 
hitting  Mr.  Damon. 

"Ready?"  asked  Tom  of  his  chum  in  a  low 
voice. 

"Ready!"  was  the  equally  low  answer. 

It  was  necesary  to  kill  the  serpent  at  one  shot, 
as  to  merely  wound  it  might  mean  that  in  its 
agony  it  would  thresh  about,  and  seriously  injure, 
if  not  kill,  Mr.  Damon. 

"Fire!"  called  Tom  in  a  whisper,  and  he  and 
Ned  pressed  the  triggers  of  the  electric  rifles  on' 
the  same  instant. 

There  was  a  streak  of  bluish  flame  that  cut 
like  a  sliver  through  the  gathering  darkness,  and 
then  as  though  a  blight  had  fallen  upon  it,  the 


A  NATIVE  BATTLE  107 

folds  of  the  great  snake  relaxed,  and  Mr.  Damon 
slipped  to  the  ground  unconscious.  The  electric 
charges  had  gone  fairly  through  the  head  of  the 
serpent  and  it  had  died  instantly. 

"Quick!  Mr.  Damon!  We  must  get  him 
away!"  cried  Tom.  "He  may  be  dead!" 

Together  the  chums  sprang  forward.  The 
folds  of  the  serpent  had  scarcely  ceased  moving 
before  the  two  youths  snatched  their  friend  away. 
Dropping  their  rifles,  they  lifted  him  up  to  bear 
him  to  the  sleeping  tent  which  had  been  erected. 

"Liver  pin!"  suddenly  ejaculated  Mr.  Damon. 
It  was  what  he  started  to  say  when  the  serpent 
had  squeezed  the  breath  out  of  him,  and,  on  re- 
gaining consciousness  from  his  momentary  faint, 
his  brain  carried  out  the  suggestion  it  had  origi- 
nally received. 

"How  are  you?"  cried  Tom,  nearly  dropping 
Mr.  Damon's  legs  in  his  excitement,  for  he  had 
hold  of  his  feet,  while  Ned  was  at  the  head. 

"Are  you  all  right?"  gasped  Ned. 

"Yes — I — I  guess  so.  I — I  feel  as  though  I 
had  been  put  through  a  clothes  wringer  though. 
What  happened?" 

"A  big  snake  dropped  down  out  of  a  tree  and 
grabbed  you,"  answered  Tom. 

"And  then  what?  Put  me  down,  boys,  I  guess 
I  can  walk." 


108  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"We  shot  it,"  said  Ned  modestly. 

"Bless  my  insurance  policy!"  exclaimed  the 
odd  gentleman.  "I — I  hardly  know  what  to  say, 
I'll  say  it  later.  You  saved  my  life.  Let  me  see 
if  any  bones  are  broken." 

None  was,  fortunately,  and  after  staggering 
about  a  bit  Mr.  Damon  found  that  he  could  limp 
along.  But  he  was  very  sore  and  bruised,  for, 
ihough  the  snake  had  squeezed  him  but  for  part 
of  a  minute,  that  was  long  enough.  A  few 
seconds  more  and  nearly  every  bone  in  his  body 
would  have  been  crushed,  for  that  is  the  manner 
in  which  a  constrictor  snake  kills  its  prey  before 
devouring  it. 

"Santa  Maria!  The  dear  gentleman  is  not 
dead  then?"  cried  San  Pedro,  as  the  three  ap- 
proached the  tents. 

"Bless  my  name  plate,  no!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Damon. 

"Praise  to  all  the  saints!  The  brave  young 
senors  with  their  wonderful  guns  saved  him. 
Now  you  must  rest  and  sleep." 

"I  feel  as  if  that  was  all  I  wanted  to  do  for  a 
month,"  commented  Mr.  Damon.  His  soreness 
and  stiffness  increased  each  minute,  and  he  was 
glad  to  get  to  bed,  while  the  boys  and  Eradicate 
rubbed  his  limbs  with  liniment.  San  Pedro  knew 
of  a  leaf  that  grew  in  the  jungle  which,  when 


A  NATIVE  BATTLE  109 

bruised,  and  made  into  poultices,  had  the  prop- 
erty of  drawing  out  soreness.  The  next  day  he 
found  some,  and  Mr.  Damon  was  wrapped  up  in 
bandages  until  he  declared  that  he  looked  like  an 
Egyptian  mummy. 

But  the  leaf  poultices  did  him  good,  and  in  a 
few  days  he  was  able  to  be  about,  though  he  was 
still  a  trifle  stiff.  Of  course  the  cavalcade  had  to 
halt  in  the  woods,  but  they  did  not  mind  this  as 
they  had  traveled  well  up  to  this  time,  and  the 
enforced  rest  was  appreciated. 

"Well,  do  you  feel  able  to  move  along?"  asked 
Tom  of  Mr.  Damon  one  morning,  about  a  week 
later,  for  they  were  still  in  the  "snake  camp,"  as 
they  called  it  in  memory  of  the  big  serpent. 

"Oh,  yes,  I  think  so,  Tom.  Where  are  you 
going?" 

"I  want  to  push  on  to  the  next  village.  There 
I  hope  to  get  some  line  on  giant  land,  and  really 
I  ought  to  begin  making  inquiries  soon.  San 
Pedro  and  the  others  are  wondering  what  our 
object  is,  for  we  haven't  collected  any  specimens 
of  either  flowers  or  animals,  or  the  snake  skin, 
and  he  thinks  we  are  a  sort  of  scientific  expedi- 
tion." 

"Well,  let's  travel  then.    I'm  able." 

So  they  started  off  once  more  along  the  jungle 
and  forest  trail.  As  San  Pedro  had  predicted, 


HO  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

they  came  upon  evidences  of  a  native  village. 
Scattered  huts,  made  of  plastered  mud  and  grass, 
with  thatched  roofs  of  palm  leaves,  were  met 
with,  as  they  advanced,  but  none  of  the  places 
seemed  to  be  inhabited,  though  rude  gardens 
around  them  showed  that  they  had  been  the  homes 
of  natives  up  to  recently. 

"No  one  seems  to  be  at  home,"  remarked  Tom, 
when  they  had  gone  past  perhaps  half  a  dozen  of 
these  lonely  huts. 

"I  wonder  what  can  be  the  matter?"  asked 
Ned.  "It  looks  as  if  they  had  gone  off  in  a 
hurry,  too.  Maybe  there's  been  some  sort  of 
epidemic." 

"No,  no  sickness,"  said  San  Pedro.  "Natives 
no  sick." 

"Bless  my  liver  pill!"  cried  Mr.  Damon,  who 
was  almost  himself  again.  "Then  what  is  it?n 

"Much  fight,  maybe." 

"Much  fight?"  repeated  Tom. 

"Yes,  tribes  at  war.  Maybe  natives  go  away 
so  as  not  be  killed." 

"By  Jove!"  exclaimed  the  young  inventor. 
"That's  so.  I  forgot  about  what  Mr.  Preston 
said.  There's  a  native  war  going  on  around 
here.  Well,  when  we  get  to  the  town  we  can 
find  out  more  about  it,  and  steer  clear  of  the  two 
armies,  if  we  have  to." 


A  NATIVE  BATTLE  III' 

But  as  they  went  farther  on,  the  evidences  of 
a  native  war  became  more  pronounced.  They 
passed  several  huts  that  had  been  burned,  and 
the  native  mule  drivers  began  showing  signs  of 
fear. 

"I  don't  like  this,"  murmured  Tom  to  his 
chum.  "It  looks  bad." 

"What  can  you  do?" 

"Nothing,  I  guess.  We've  got  to  keep  on.  No 
use  turning  back  now.  Maybe  the  two  rival 
forces  have  annihilated  each  other,  and  there 
aren't  any  fighters  left." 

At  that  moment  there  arose  a  cry  from  some 
of  the  natives  who,  with  the  mules  and  their 
burdens,  had  pressed  on  ahead. 

"What's  that?"  exclaimed  Tom. 

"Something's  happened!"  gasped  Ned. 

"Bless  my  cartridge  box!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 

The  three  went  forward  and  came  to  a  little 
hill.  They  looked  down  into  a  valley — a  valley 
that  had  sheltered  a  native  village,  but  the  vil- 
lage was  no  more.  It  was  but  a  heap  of  blackened 
and  fire-scarred  ruins,  and  there  were  still  clouds 
of  smoke  arising  from  the  grass  huts,  showing 
that  the  enemy  had  but  recently  made  their  as- 
sault on  the  place. 

"Bless  my  heart!"  cried  Mr.  Damon  ''The 
whole  place  has  been  wiped  out." 


1 12  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Not  one  hut  left,"  added  Ned. 

"Hark!"  cried  Tom. 

An  instant  later  there  arose,  off  in  the  woods, 
a  chorus  of  wild  yells.  It  was  followed  by  the 
weird  sound  of  tom-toms  and  the  gourd  and 
skin  drums  of  the  natives.  The  shouting  noise 
increased,  and  the  sound  of  the  war  drums  also. 

"Look!"  cried  Mr.  Damon,  pointing  to  a  dis- 
tant hill,  and  there  the  boys  boys  saw  two  large 
bodies  of  natives  rushing  toward  one  another, 
brandishing  spears,  clubs  and  the  deadly  blow 
guns. 

They  were  not  more  than  half  a  mile  away, 
and  in  plain  view  of  Tom  and  his  party,  though 
the  two  forces  had  not  yet  seen  our  friends. 

"They're  going  to  fight!"  cried  Tom. 

And  the  next  moment  the  two  bodies  of  natives 
came  together  in  a  mass,  the  enemies  hurling 
themselves  at  each  other  with  the  eagerness  and 
ferocity  of  wild  beasts.  It  was  a  deadly  battle. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

THE  DESERTION 

"SAY,  look  at  those  fellows  pitch  into  one 
another!"  gasped  Ned. 

"It's  fighting  at  close  range  all  right,"  com- 
mented Mr.  Damon. 

"If  they  had  rifles  they  wouldn't  be  at  it  hand 
to  hand,"  spoke  Tom.  "Maybe  it's  just  as  well 
they  haven't,  for  there  won't  be  so  many  killed, 
But  say,  we'd  better  be  thinking  of  ourselves. 
They  may  make  up  their  quarrel  and  turn  against 
us  any  minute. 

"No — never — no  danger  of  them  being  friends 
• — they  are  rival  tribes,"  said  San  Pedro.  "But 
either  one  may  attack  us — the  one  that  is  the 
victor.  It  is  better  that  we  keep  away." 

"I  guess  you're  right,"  agreed  Tom.  "Lead 
the  way,  San  Pedro,  and  we'll  get  out  of  sight." 

But  there  was  a  fascination  in  watching  the 
distant  battle  that  was  hard  to  resist  It  was  like 
looking  at  a  moving  picture,  for  at  that  distance 
none  of  the  horrors  of  war  were  visible.  True, 

"3 


114  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

natives  went  down  by  scores,  and  it  was  not  to 
be  doubted  but  what  they  were  killed  or  injured, 
but  it  seemed  more  like  a  big  football  scrimmage 
than  a  fight. 

"This  is  great!"  cried  Tom.  "I  like  to  watch 
it,  but  I'm  sorry  for  the  poor  chaps  that  get  hurt 
or  killed.  I  hope  they're  only  stunned  as  we 
stunned  the  wild  horses." 

"I'm  afraid  it  is  more  serious  than  that,"  spoke 
San  Pedro.  "These  natives  are  very  bloodthirsty. 
It  would  not  be  well  for  us  to  incur  their  anger." 

"We  won't  run  any  chances,"  decided  Tom. 
"We'll  just  travel  on.  Come  on,  Ned — Mr. 
Damon." 

As  he  spoke  there  was  a  sudden  victorious 
shout  from  the  scene  of  the  battle.  One  body  of 
natives  was  seen  to  turn  and  flee,  while  the  others 
pursued  them. 

"Now's  our  time  to  make  tracks!"  called  Tom. 
"We'll  have  to  push  on  to  the  next  village  before 

we  can  ask  where  the  gi "  he  caught  himself 

just  in  *ime,  for  San  Pedro  was  looking  curiously 
at  him. 

"The  senor  wishes  to  find  something?"  asked 
the  head  mule  driver  with  an  insinuating  smile. 

"Yes,"  broke  in  Eradicate.  "We  all  is  lookin' 
fo'  some  monstrous  giant  orchards  flowers." 

"Ah,  yes,  orchids,"  spoke  San  Pedro.     "Well 


THE  DESER  TION  115 

there  may  be  some  in  the  jungle  ahead  of  us,  but 
the  senors  have  come  the  wrong  trail  for 
flowers,"  and  he  looked  curiously  at  Tom,  while, 
from  afar,  come  the  sound  of  the  native  battle 
though  the  combatants  could  no  longer  be  seen. 

"Never  mind,"  said  our  hero  quickly.  "I  guess 
I'll  find  what  I  want.  Now  come  on." 

They  started  off,  skirting  the  burned  village  to 
get  on  the  trail  beyond  it.  But  hardly  had  they 
made  a  detour  of  the  burned  huts  than  one  of 
the  native  drivers,  who  was  in  the  rear,  came  rid- 
ing up  with  a  shout. 

"Now  what's  the  matter?"  cried  Tom,  looking 
back. 

There  was  a  voluble  chattering  in  Spanish  be- 
tween the  driver  and  San  Pedro. 

"He  says  the  natives  that  lived  in  this  village 
have  driven  their  enemies  away,  and  are  coming 
back — after  us,"  translated  the  head  mule  driver. 

"After  us!"  gasped  Ned. 

"Yes,"  replied  San  Pedro  simply.  "They  are 
coming  even  now.  They  will  fight  too,  for  all 
their  wild  nature  is  aroused." 

It  needed  but  a  moment's  listening  to  prove 
this.  From  the  rear  came  wild  yells  and  the  beat- 
ing of  drums  and  tom-toms. 

"Bless  my  fountain  pen!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
"What  are  we  going  to  do?" 


Il6  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Stop  them  if  we  can,"  answered  Tom  coolly, 
"Ned,  you  and  I  and  Mr.  Damon  will  form  a 
rear  guard.  San  Pedro,  take  the  mules  and  the 
men,  and  make  as  good  time  as  you  can  in  ad- 
vance. We'll  take  three  of  the  fastest  mules, 
and  hold  these  fellows  back  with  the  electric  rifles, 
and  when  we've  done  that  we'll  ride  on  and 
catch  up  to  you." 

"Very  good,"  said  San  Pedro,  who  seemed 
relieved  to  know  that  he  did  not  have  to  do  any 
of  the  righting. 

Three  of  the  lighter  weight  mules,  who  carried 
small  burdens,  were  quickly  relieved  of  them, 
and  mounting  these  steeds  in  preference  to  the 
ones  they  had  been  riding  since  they  took  the 
trail,  Tom,  Ned  and  Mr.  Damon  dropped  back 
to  try  and  hold  off  the  enemy, 

They  had  not  far  to  ride  nor  long  to  wait 
They  could  hear  the  fierce  yells  of  the  victorious 
tribesmen  as  they  came  back  to  their  ruined  vil- 
lage, and  though  there  were  doubtless  sad  hearts 
among  them,  they  rejoiced  that  they  had  de- 
feated their  enemies.  They  knew  they  could  soon 
rebuild  the  simple  grass  huts. 

"Small  charges,  just  to  stun  them!"  ordered 
Tom,  and  the  electric  rifles  were  so  adjusted. 

"Here's  a  good  place  to  meet  them,"  suggested 
Ned,  as  they  came  to  a  narrow  turn  in  the  trail. 


THE  DESERTION 

""They  can't  come  against  us  but  a  few  at  a  time, 
and  we  can  pump  them  full  of  electricity  from 
here." 

"The  very  thing!"  cried  Tom,  as  he  dis- 
mounted, an  example  followed  by  the  others. 
Then,  in  another  moment,  they  saw  the  blacks 
rushing  toward  them.  They  were  clad  in  nonde- 
script garments,  evidently  of  their  own  make, 
and  they  carried  clubs,  spears,  bows  and  arrows 
and  blow  guns.  There  was  not  a  firearm  among 
them,  as  they  passed  on  after  the  party  of  our 
friends  whom  they  had  seen  from  the  battle-hill. 
They  gave  wild  yells  as  they  saw  the  young  in- 
ventor's friends. 

"Let  *em  have  it!"  called  Tom  in  a  low  voice, 
and  the  electric  rifles  sent  out  their  stunning 
charges.  Several  natives  in  the  front  rank 
dropped,  and  there  was  a  cry  of  fear  and  won- 
der from  the  others.  Then,  after  a  moment's 
hesitation  they  pressed  on  again. 

"Once  more!"  cried  Tom. 

Again  the  electric  rifles  spoke,  and  half  a  score 
went  down  unconscious,  but  not  seriously  hurt. 
In  a  few  hours  they  would  be  as  well  as  ever, 
such  was  the  merciful  charge  that  Tom  Swift 
and  the  others  used  in  the  rifles. 

The  third  time  they  fired,  and  this  was  too 
much  for  the  natives.  They  could  not  battle 


Il8  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

against  an  unseen  and  silent  enemy  who  mowed 
them  down  like  a  field  of  grain.  With  wild  yelh 
they  fled  back  along  the  trail  they  had  come. 

"I  guess  that  does  it!"  cried  Tom.  "We'd 
better  join  the  others  now." 

Mounting  their  mules,  they  galloped  back  to 
where  San  Pedro  and  his  natives  were  pressing 
forward. 

"Did  you  have  the  honor  of  defeating  them/ 
the  head  mule  driver  asked. 

"I  had  the  honor/'  answered  Tom,  with  a  grin* 
smile. 

Then  they  pressed  on,  but  tnere  was  no  morcj 
danger.  That  night  they  camped  in  a  peaceful 
valley  and  were  not  disturbed,  and  the  following 
day  they  put  a  good  many  miles  behind  them. 
On  the  advice  of  San  Pedro,  they  avoided  ths 
next  two  villages  as  they  realized  that  they  were 
in  the  war  zone,  and  then  they  headed  for  a  large 
town  where  Tom  was  sure  he  would  hear  some 
news  of  the  giants. 

They  had  to  camp  twice  at  night  before  reach- 
ing this  town,  and  when  they  did  get  to  it  they 
were  warmly  welcomed,  for  white  explorers  had; 
been  there  years  before,  and  had  treated  the  na- 
tives well.  Tom  distributed  many  trinkets  among 
the  head  men  and  won  their  good  will  so  that  the 


THE  DESERTION  119 

party  was  given  comfortable  huts  in  which  to 
sleep,  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  provisions. 

"Can  you  arrange  for  a  talk  with  the  chief?" 
asked  Tom  of  San  Pedro  that  night.  "I  want  to 
ask  him  about  certain  things. " 

"About  where  you  can  find  giant  flowers  ?* 
asked  the  mule  driver  with  a  quick  look. 

"Yes — er — and  other  giant  things,"  replied 
Tom. 

"I  fix,"  answered  San  Pedro  shortly,  but  there 
was  a  queer  look  on  his  face. 

A  few  hours  later  Tom  was  summoned  to  the 
hut  of  the  chief  of  the  town,  and  thither  he 
went  with  Ned,  Mr.  Damon  and  San  Pedro  as 
interpreter,  for  the  natives  spoke  a  jargon  of 
their  own  that  Tom  could  not  understand. 

There  were  some  simple  ceremonies  to  observe, 
and  then  Tom  found  himself  facing  the  chief, 
with  San  Pedro  by  his  side.  After  the  greetings, 
land  an  exchange  of  presents,  Tom  giving  him  a 
cheap  phonograph  with  which  the  chief  was 
wildly  delighted,  there  came  the  time  to  talk. 

"Ask  him  where  the  giant  men  live?"  our  hero 
directed  San  Pedro,  believing  that  the  time  had 
now  come  to  disclose  the  object  of  his  expedition. 

"Giant  men,  Senor  Swift?  I  thought  it  was 
giant  plants  —  orchids  —  you  were  after,"  ex- 
claimed San  Pedro. 


120  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Well,  I'll  take  a  few  giant  men  if  I  can  find 
them.  Tell  him  I  understand  there  is  a  tribe  of 
giants  in  this  country.  Ask  him  if  he  ever  heard 
of  them." 

San  Pedro  hesitated.  He  looked  at  Tom,  and 
the  young  inventor  fancied  that  there  was  a 
tinge  of  white  on  the  swarthy  face  of  the  chief 
mule  driver.  But  San  Pedro  translated  the  ques* 
tion. 

It's  effect  on  the  chief  was  strange.  He  half 
leaped  from  his  seat,  and  stared  at  Tom.  Then 
he  uttered  a  cry — a  cry  of  fear — and  spoke 
rapidly. 

"What  does  he  say?"  asked  Tom  of  San  Pedra 
eagerly,  when  the  chief  had  ceased  speaking. 

"He  say — he  say,"  began  the  mule  driver  and 
the  words  seemed  to  stick  in  his  throat — "he  say 
there  are  giants — many  miles  to  the  north.  Ter- 
rible big  men — very  crue! — and  they  are  fearful. 
Once  they  came  here  and  took  some  of  his  people 
away.  He  is  afraid  of  them.  We  are  all  afraid 
of  them,"  and  San  Pedro  looked  around  appre- 
hensively, as  though  he  might  see  one  of  the  giant? 
stalking  into  the  chief's  hut  at  any  moment. 

"Ask  him  how  many  miles  north?"  asked  Tom, 
hardly  able  to  conceal  his  delight.  The  giants 
had  no  terrors  for  him. 

"Two  weeks'  journey,"  translated  San  Pedro, 


THE  DESERTION  121 

"Good!"  cried  the  young  inventor.  "Then 
we'll  keep  right  on.  Hurrah!  I'm  on  the  right 
track  at  last,  and  I'll  have  a  giant  for  the  circus 
and  we  may  be  able  to  rescue  Mr.  Poddington!" 

"Is  the  senor  in  earnest?"  asked  San  Pedro, 
looking  at  Tom  curiously.  "Is  he  really  going 
among  these  terrible  giants?" 

"Yes,  but  I  don't  believe  they'll  be  so  terrible. 
They  may  be  very  gentle.  I'm  sure  they'll  be 
glad  to  come  with  me  and  join  a  circus — some  of 
them — and  earn  a  hundred  dollars  a  week.  Of 
course  we're  going  on  to  giant  land !" 

"Very  good,"  said  San  Pedro  quietly,  and  then 
he  followed  Tom  out  of  the  chief's  hut. 

"It's  all  right,  Ned  old  sport,  we'll  get  to  giant 
Jand  after  all!"  cried  Tom  to  his  chum  as  they 
reached  the  hut  where  they  were  quartered. 

The  next  morning  when  Tom  got  up,  and 
looked  for  San  Pedro  and  his  men,  to  give  orders 
about  the  march  that  day,  the  mule  drivers  were 
nowhere  to  be  seen.  Nor  were  the  mules  in  the 
places  where  they  had  been  tethered.  Their 
packs  lay  in  a  well  ordered  heap,  but  the  animals 
and  their  drivers  were  gone. 

"This  is  queer,"  said  Tom,  rubbing  his  eyes 
to  make  sure  that  he  saw  aright.  "I  wonder 
where  they  are?  Rad,  look  around  for  them." 

The  colored  man  did  so,  and  came  back 


122  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

to  report  that  San  Pedro  and  his  men  had  gone 
in  the  night  Some  of  the  native  villagers  told 
him  so  by  signs,  Eradicate  said.  They  had  stolen 
away. 

"Gone!"  gasped  Tom.    "Gone  where?" 

"Bless  my  railroad  ticket!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 

"We're  deserted,"  exclaimed  Ned.  "They've 
taken  the  mules,  and  left  us." 

"I  guess  that's  it,"  admitted  Tom  ruefully, 
after  a  minute's  thought.  "San  Pedro  couldn't 
stand  for  the  giants.  He's  had  a  frightful  flunk. 
Well,  we're  all  alone,  but  we'll  go  on  to  giant 
land  anyhow!  We  can  get  more  mules.  A  little 
thing  like  this  can't  phase  me.  Are  you  with  me, 
"Ned — Mr.  Damon — Eradicate?" 

"Of  course  we  are!"  they  cried  without  a 
moment's  hesitation. 

"Then  we'll  go  to  giant  land  alone!"  exclaimed 
Tom.  ''Come  on,  now,  and  we'll  see  if  we  can 
arrange  for  some  pack  animals." 


CHAPTER    XIV 

IN    GIANT    LAND 

WHEN  it  first  became  sure  that  San  Pedro  and 
the  other  natives  had  deserted — fled  in  the  night, 
for  fear  of  the  giants — there  was  a  reactionary 
feeling  of  despondency  and  gloom  among  Torn 
and  his  three  friends.  But  the  boldness  and 
energy  of  the  young  inventor,  his  vigorous  words, 
his  determination  to  proceed  at  any  cost  to  the 
unknown  land  that  lay  before  them — these  served 
as  a  tonic,  and  after  a  few  moments,  Ned,  Mr. 
Damon,  and  even  Eradicate  looked  at  things  with 
brighter  spirits. 

"Do  you  really  mean  it,  Tom?"  asked  Ned. 
"Will  you  go  on  to  giant  land?" 

"I  surely  will,  if  we  can  find  it.  Why,  we 
found  the  city  of  gold  all  alone,  you  and  Mr. 
Damon  and  I,  and  I  don't  see  why  we  can't  find 
this  land,  especially  when  all  we  have  to  do  is  to 
march  forward." 

"But  look  at  the  lot  of  stuff  we  have  to  carry!** 

123 


124  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

went  on  Ned,  waving  his  hand  toward  the  heap 
of  packs  that  the  mule  drivers  had  left  behind. 

"Bless  my  baggage  check,  yes!"  added  Mr. 
Damon.  "We  can  never  do  it,  Tom.  We  had 
better  leave  it  here,  and  try  to  get  back  to  civi- 
lization." 

"Never!"  cried  Tom.  "I  started  off  after  a 
giant,  and  I'm  going  to  get  one,  if  I  can  induce 
one  of  the  big  men  to  come  back  with  me.  I'm 
not  going  to  give  up  when  we're  so  close.  We 
can  get  more  pack  animals,  I'm  sure.  I'm  going 
to  have  a  try  for  it.  If  I  can't  speak  the  language 
of  these  natives  I  can  make  signs.  Come  on,  Ned^, 
we'll  pay  a  morning  visit  to  the  chief." 

"I'll  come  along,"  added  Mr.  Damon. 

"That's  right,"  replied  the  young  inventor. 
"Rad,  you  go  stand  guard  over  our  stuff.  Some 
of  the  natives  might  not  be  able  to  withstand 
temptation.  Don't  let  them  touch  anything." 

"Dat's  what  I  won't,  Massa  Tom.  Good  land 
a  massy !  ef  I  sees  any  ob  'em  lay  a  finger  on  a 
pack  I'll  shoot  off  my  shotgun  close  to  der  ears, 
so  I  will.  Oh,  ef  I  only  had  Boomerang  here, 
he  could  carry  mos'  all  ob  dis  stuff  his  own  se'f." 

"You've  got  a  great  idea  of  Boomerang's 
strength,"  remarked  Tom  with  a  laugh,  as  he 
and  Ned  and  Mr.  Damon  started  for  the  big  hut 
where  the  chief  lived. 


IN  GIANT  LAND  125 

"Do  you  really  think  San  Pedro  and  the  others 
left  because  they  were  afraid  of  the  giants  we 
might  meet?"  asked  Ned. 

"I  think  so,"  answered  his  chum. 

"Bless  my  toothpick!"  gasped  Mr.  Damon.  "In 
that  case  maybe  we'd  better  be  on  the  lookout 
ourselves." 

"Time  enough  to  worry  when  we  get  there,** 
answered  the  young  inventor.  "From  what  the 
circus  man  said  the  giants  are  not  particularly 
cruel.  Of  course  Mr.  Preston  didn't  have  much 
information  to  go  on,  but — well,  we'll  have  to 
wait — that's  all.  But  I'm  sure  San  Pedro»  and 
the  others  were  in  a  blue  funk  and  vamoosea  on 
that  account." 

"Hey,  Massa  Tom!"  suddenly  called  Eradicate. 
"Heah  am  a  letter  I  found  on  de  baggage,"  and 
he  ran  forward  with  a  missive,  rudely  scrawled 
on  a  scrap  of  paper. 

"It's  from  San  Pedro,"  remarked  Tom  after  a 
glance  at  it,  "and  it  bears  out  what  I  said.  He 
writes  that  he  and  his  men  never  suspected  that 
we  were  going  after  the  giants,  or  they  would 
never  have  come  with  us.  He  says  they  are  very 
sorry  to  leave  us,  as  we  treated  them  well,  but 
are  afraid  to  go  on.  He  adds  that  they  have 
taken  enough  of  our  bartering  goods  to  make  ug 


126  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

their  wages,  and  enough  food  to  carry  them  to 
the  next  village. 

"Well,"  finished  Tom,  as  he  folded  the  paper, 
"I  suppose  we  can't  kick,  and,  maybe  after  all, 
it  will  be  for  the  best.  Now  to  see  if  the  chief 
can  let  us  have  some  mules. " 

It  took  some  time,  by  means  of  signs,  to  make 
the  chief  understand  what  had  happened,  but, 
when  Tom  had  presented  him  with  a  little  toy 
that  ran  by  a  spring,  and  opened  up  a  pack  of 
trading  goods,  which  he  indicated  would  be  ex- 
changed for  mules,  or  other  beasts  of  burden,  the 
chief  grinned  in  a  friendly  fashion,  and  issued 
certain  orders. 

Several  of  his  men  hurried  from  the  big  hut, 
and  a  little  later,  when  Tom  was  showing  the 
chief  how  to  run  the  toy,  there  was  a  sound  of 
confusion  outside. 

"Bless  my  battle  axe!"  cried  Mr.  Damon.  "I 
hope  that's  not  another  war  going  on." 

"It's  our  new  mules !"  cried  Ned,  taking  a  look. 
"And  some  cows  and  a  bony  horse  or  two,  Tom. 
We've  drawn  a  rich  lot  of  pack  animals!" 

Indeed  there  was  a  nondescript  collection  of 
beasts  of  burden.  There  were  one  or  two  good 
mules,  several  sorry  looking  horses,  and  a  number 
of  sleepy-eyed  steers.  But  there  were  enough  of 


IN  GIANT  LAND  127 

them  to  carry  all  the  boxes  and  bales  that  con- 
tained the  outfit  of  our  friends. 

"It  might  be  worse,"  commented  Tom.  "Now 
if  they'll  help  us  pack  up  we'll  travel  on." 

More  sign  language  was  resorted  to,  and  the 
chief,  after  another  present  had  been  made  to 
him,  sent  some  of  his  men  to  help  put  the  packs 
on  the  animals.  The  steers,  which  Tom  did  not 
regard  with  much  favor,  proved  to  be  better  than 
the  mules,  and  by  noon  our  friends  were  all 
packed  up  again,  and  ready  to  take  the  trail.  The 
chief  gave  them  a  good  dinner, — as  native  dinners 
go, — and  then,  after  telling  them  that,  though  he 
had  never  seen  the  giants  it  had  1-ong  been  known 
that  they  inhabitated  the  country  to  the  north,  he 
waved  a  friendly  good-bye. 

"Well,  we'll  see  what  luck  we'll  have  by  our- 
selves," remarked  Tom,  as  he  mounted  a  bony 
mule,  an  example  followed  by  Ned,  Mr.  Damon 
and  Eradicate.  They  had  left  behind  some  of 
their  goods,  and  so  did  not  have  so  much  to  carry. 
Food  they  had  in  condensed  form  and  they  were 
getting  into  the  more  tropical  part  of  the  country 
where  game  abounded. 

It  was  not  as  easy  as  they  had  imagined  it 
would  be  for,  with  only  four  to  drive  so  many 
animals,  several  of  the  beasts  were  continually 
straykig  from  the  trail,  and  once  a  big  steer, 


128  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

with  part  of  the  aeroplane  on  its  back,  wandered 
isto  a  morass  and  they  had  to  labor  hard  to  get 
the  animal  out. 

"Well,  this  is  fierce!"  exclaimed  Tom,  at  the 
end  of  the  first  day  when,  tired  and  weary,  bitten 
by  insects,  and  torn  by  jungle  briars,  they  made 
camp  that  night. 

"Going  to  give  up?"  asked  Ned. 
"Not  much!" 

They  felt  better  after  supper,  and,  tethering  the 
animals  securely,  they  stretched  out  in  their  tents, 
with  mosqtjito  canopies  over  them  to  keep  away 
the  pestering  insects. 

"I've  got  a  new  scheme,"  announced  Tom  next 
morning  at  breakfast. 

"What  is  it?  Going  on  the  rest  of  the  way  in 
the  aeroplane?"  asked  Ned  hopefully. 

"No,  though  I  believe  if  I  had  brought  the. 
big  airship  along  I  could  have  used  it.  But  I 
mean  about  driving  the  animals.  I'm  going  to 
make  a  long  line  of  them,  tying  one  to  the  other 
like  the  elephants  in  the  circus  when  they  march 
around,  holding  each  other's  tails.  Then  one  of 
us  will  ride  in  front,  another  in  the  rear,  and  one 
on  each  side.  In  that  way  we'll  keep  them  going 
and  they  won't  stray  off. 

"Bless  my  button  hook!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
"That's  a  good  idea,  Tom!"  It  was  carried  out 


IN  GIANT  LAND 

with  much  success,  and  thereafter  they  traveled 
better. 

But  even  at  the  best  it  was  not  easy  work,  and 
more  than  once  Tom's  friends  urged  him  to  turn 
back.  But  he  would  not,  ever  pressing  on,  with 
the  strange  land  for  his  goal.  They  had  long 
since  passed  the  last  of  the  native  villages,  and  they 
had  to  depend  on  their  own  efforts  for  food. 
Fortunately  they  did  not  have  any  lack  of  game, 
and  they  fared  well  with  what  they  had  with 
them  in  the  packs. 

Occasionally  they  met  little  bands  of  native 
hunters,  and,  though  usually  these  men  fled  at 
the  sight  of  our  friends,  yet  once  they  managed 
to  make  signs  to  one,  who,  informed  them  as  best 
he  could,  that  giant  land  was  still  far  ahead  of 
them. 

Twice  they  heard  distant  sounds  of  native 
battles  and  the  weird  noise  of  the  wooden  drums 
and  the  tom-toms.  Once,  as  they  climbed  up  a 
big  hill,  they  looked  down  into  a  valley  and  saw 
a  great  conflict  in  which  there  must  have  been 
several  thousand  natives  on  either  side.  It  was 
a  fierce  battle,  seen  even  from  afar,  and  Tom  and 
the  others  shuddered  as  they  slipped  down  over 
the  other  side  of  the  rise,  and  out  of  sight. 

"We'd  better  steer  clear  of  them,"  was  Tom's 
jppinion;  and  the  others  agreed  with  him. 


I3o  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

For  another  week  they  kept  on,  the  way  be- 
coming more  and  more  difficult,  and  the  country 
more  and  more  wild.  They  had  fairly  to  cut  their 
way  through  the  jungle  at  times,  and  the  only 
paths  were  animal  trails,  but  they  were  better 
than  nothing.  For  the  last  five  days  they  had  not 
seen  a  human  being,  and  the  loneliness  was  telling 
on  them. 

"Fd  be  glad  to  see  even  a  two-headed  giant," 
remarked  Tom  whimsically  one  night  as  they 
made  their  camp. 

"Yes,  and  I'd  be  glad  to  hear  someone  tallc, 
even  in  the  sign  language,"  added  Ned,  with  a 
grin. 

They  slept  well,  for  they  were  very  tired,  and 
Tom,  who  shared  his  tent  with  Ned,  was  awak- 
ened rather  early  the  next  morning  by  hearing 
someone  moving  outside  the  canvas  shelter. 

"Is  that  you,  Mr.  Damon?"  he  asked,  the  odd 
gentleman  having  a  tent  adjoining  that  of  the 
boys. 

There  was  no  answer. 

"Rad,  are  you  getting  breakfast?"  asked  ttie 
iyoung  inventor.  "What  time  is  it?" 

Still  no  answer. 

"What's  the  matter?"  asked  Ned,  who  had  been 
awakened  by  Tom's  inquiries. 

Before  our  hero  had  a  chance  to  reply  the  flap 


IN  GIANT  LAND  131 

of  his  tent  was  pulled  back,  and  a  head  was  thrust 
in.  But  such  a  head!  It  was  enormous!  A 
head  covered  with  a  thick  growth  of  tawny  hair, 
and  a  face  almost  hidden  in  a  big  tawny,  bushy 
beard.  Then  an  arm  was  thrust  in — an  arm  that 
terminated  in  a  brawny  fist  that  clasped  a  great 
club.  There  was  no  mistaking  the  object  that 
gazed  in  on  the  two  youths.  It  was  a  gigantic 
man — a  man  almost  twice  the  size  of  any  Tom 
had  ever  seen.  And  then  our  hero  knew  that  he 
had  reached  the  end  of  his  quest. 

"A  giant!"  gasped  Tom.  "Ned!  Ned,  we're 
in  the  big  men's  country,  and  we  didn't  know  it!" 

"I— I  guess  you're  right,  Tom!" 

The  giant  started  at  the  sounds  of  their  voices, 
and  then  his  face  breaking  into  a  broad  grin,  that 
showed  a  great  mouth  filled  with  white  teeth,  he 
called  to  them  in  an  unknown  tongue  and  in  a 
voice  that  seemed  to  fairly  shake  the  frail  tent. 


CHAPTER  XV 


IN  THE  "PALACE"  OF  THE  KING 


FOR  a  few  moments  after  their  first  ejacula- 
tions neither  Tom  nor  Ned  knew  what  to  do. 
The  giant  continued  to  gaze  at  them,  with  the 
same  good-natured  grin  on  his  face.  Possibly 
he  was  amused  at  the  small  size  of  the  persons 
in  the  tent.  Then  Tom  spoke. 

"He  doesn't  look  as  if  he  would  bite,  Ned." 

**No,  he  seems  harmless  enough.  Let's  get 
up,  and  see  what  happens.  I  wonder  if  there 
are  any  more  of  them?  They  must  have  come 
out  on  an  early  hunt,  and  stumbled  upon  our 
camp." 

At  this  moment  there  arose  a  cry  from  Mr. 
Damon's  tent. 

"Bless  my  burglar  alarm!"  shouted  the  odd 
gentleman.  "Tom  —  Ned  —  am  I  dreaming? 
There's  a  man  here  as  big  as  a  mountain.  Tom! 
Ned!" 

"It's  all  right,  Mr.  Damon!"  called  Tom. 
"We're  among  the  giants  all  right.  They  won't 
hurt  you. " 

"Fo'  de  good  land  ob  massy!"  screamed  Eraid- 
132 


IN  THE  "PALACE"  OF  THE  KING        133 

icate,  a  second  later,  and  then  they  knew  that  he, 
too,  had  seen  one  of  the  big  men.  "Fo*  de  lub 
ob  pork  chops !  Am  dis  de  Angel  Gabriel  ?  Listen 
to  de  blowin'  ob  de  trump!  Oh,  please  good 
Massa  Angel  Gabriel,  I  ain't  nebber  done  nuffin! 
Ts  jest  po'  ol'  Eradicate  Sampson,  an'  I  got  a  mule 
Boomerang,  and'  dat's  all  I  got.  Please  good 
Mr.  Angel " 

"Dry  up,  Rad!"  yelled  Tom.  "It's  only  one 
of  the  giants.  Come  on  out  of  your  tent  and  get 
breakfast.  We're  on  the  borders  of  giant  land, 
evidently,  and  they  seem  as  harmless  as  ordinary 
men.  Get  up,  everybody. " 

As  Tom  spoke  he  rose  from  the  rubber  blanket 
on  which  he  slept.  Ned  did  the  same,  and  the 
giant  slowly  pulled  his  head  out  from  the  tent. 
Then  the  two  youths  went  outside.  A  strange 
sight  met  their  gaze. 

There  were  about  ten  natives  standing  in  the 
camp — veritable  giants,  big  men  in  every  way. 
The  young  inventor  had  once  seen  a  giant  in  a 
circus,  and,  allowing  for  shoes  with  very  thick 
soles  which  the  big  man  wore,  his  height  was  a 
little  over  seven  feet.  But  these  South  American 
giants  seemed  more  than  a  foot  higher  than  that, 
none  of  those  who  had  stumbled  upon  the  camp 
being  less  than  eight  feet. 

"And  I  believe  there  must  be  bigger  ones  in 


I34  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

their  land,  wherever  that  is,"  said  Tom.  Nor 
were  these  giants  tall  and  thin,  as  was  the  one 
Tom  had  seen,  but  stout,  and  well  proportioned. 
They  were  savages,  that  was  evident,  but  the 
curious  part  of  it  was  that  they  were  almost 
white,  and  looked  much  like  the  pictures  of  the 
old  Norsemen. 

But,  best  of  all,  they  seemed  good-natured,  for 
they  were  continually  laughing  or  smiling,  and 
though  they  looked  with  wonder  on  the  pile  of 
boxes  and  bales,  and  on  the  four  travelers,  they 
seemed  more  bewildered  and  amused,  than  vindic- 
tive that  their  country  should  have  been  invaded. 
Evidently  the  fears  of  the  natives  who  had  told 
Tom  about  the  giants  had  been  unfounded. 

By  this  time  Mr.  Damon  and  Eradicate  had 
come  from  their  tents,  and  were  gazing  with 
startled  eyes  at  the  giants  who  surrounded  them. 

"Bless  my  walking  stick!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Damon.  "Is  it  possible?" 

"Yes,  weVe  arrived!"  cried  Tom.  "Now  to 
see  what  happens.  I  wonder  if  they'll  take  us 
to  their  village,  and  I  wonder  if  I  can  get  one 
of  these  giants  for  Mr.  Preston's  circus?" 

"You  certainly  can't  unless  he  wants  to  come,n 
declared  Ned.  "You'd  have  a  hard  tussle  trying 
to  carry  one  of  these  fellows  away  against  his 
will,  Tom." 


IN  THE  "PALACE"  OF  THE  KING        135 

"I  sure  would.  I'll  have  to  make  inducements. 
Well,  I  wonder  what  is  best  to  do?" 

The  giant  who  had  looked  in  the  tent  of  Ned 
and  Tom,  and  who  appeared  to  be  the  leader  of 
the  party,  now  spoke  in  his  big,  booming  voice. 
He  seemed  to  be  asking  Tom  a  question,  but  the 
young  inventor  could  not  understand  the  lan- 
guage. Tom  replied  in  Spanish,  giving  a  short 
account  of  why  he  and  his  companions  had  come 
to  the  country,  but  the  giant  shook  his  head. 
Then  Mr.  Damon,  who  knew  several  languages, 
tried  all  of  them — but  it  was  of  no  use. 

"We've  got  to  go  back  to  signs,"  declared  Tom, 
and  then,  as  best  he  could,  he  indicated  that  he 
and  the  others  had  come  from  afar  to  seek  the 
giants.  He  doubted  whether  he  was  understood, 
and  he  decided  to  wait  until  later  to  try  and 
make  them  acquainted  with  the  fact  that  he 
wanted  one  of  them  to  come  back  with  him. 

The  head  giant  nodded,  showing  that  at  least 
he  understood  something,  and  then  spoke  to  his 
companions.  They  conversed  in  their  loud  voices 
for  some  time,  and  then  motioned  to  the  pacK 
animals. 

"I  guess  they  want  us  to  come  along,"  said 
Tom,  "but  let's  have  breakfast  first.  Rad,  get 
things  going.  Maybe  the  giants  will  have  some 
coffee  and  condensed  milk,  though  they'll  have 


1136  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

to  take  about  ten  cupsful  to  make  them  thinB 
they've  had  anything.  Make  a  lot  of  coffee,  Rad." 

"But  good  land  a  massy,  dey'll  eat  up  ebery* 
t'ing  we  got,  Massa  Tom,"  objected  the  colored 
man. 

"Can't  help  it,  Rad.  They're  our  guests  and 
we've  got  to  be  polite,"  replied  the  youth.  "It 
isn't  every  day  that  we  have  giants  to  break- 
fast." 

The  big  men  watched  curiously  while  Rad 
built  a  fire,  and  when  the  colored  man  was  trying 
to  break  a  tough  stick  of  wood  with  the  axe, 
one  of  the  giants  picked  up  the  fagot  and  snapped 
it  in  his  fingers  as  easily  as  though  it  were  a 
twig,  though  the  stick  was  as  thick  as  Tom's  arm. 

"Some  strength  there,"  murmured  Ned  to  his 
chum  admiringly. 

"Yes,  if  they  took  a  notion  to  go  on  a  rampage 
we'd  have  trouble.  But  they  seem  kind  and 
gentle." 

Indeed  the  giants  did,  and  they  liked  the  coffee 
which  they  tasted  rather  gingerly  at  first  After 
their  first  sip  they  wanted  more,  made  as  sweet 
as  possible,  and  they  laughed  and  talked  among 
themselves  while  Eradicate  boiled  pot  after  pot 

"Dey  suah  will  eat  us  out  of  house  an'  home* 
Massa  Tom,"  he  wailed. 


IN  THE  "PALACE"  OF  THE  KING        137 

"Never  mind,  Rad.  They  will  feed  us  well 
when  we  get  to  their  town." 

Then  the  pack  animals  were  laden  with  their 
burdens.  This  was  always  a  task,  but  for  the 
giants  it  was  child's  play.  With  one  hand  they 
would  lift  a  box  or  bale  that  used  to  tax  the  com- 
bined strength  of  the  four  travelers,  and  Soon 
the  steers,  horses  and  mules  were  ready  to  pro- 
ceed. The  giants  went  on  ahead,  to  show  the 
way,  the  first  one,  who  seemed  to  be  called 
"Oom,"  for  that  was  the  way  his  companions 
addressed  him,  walked  beside  Tom,  who  rode 
on  a  mule.  In  fact  the  giant  had  to  walk  slowly, 
so  as  not  to  get  ahead  of  the  animal.  Oom  tried 
to  talk  to  Tom,  but  it  was  hard  work  to  pick  out 
the  signs  that  meant  something,  and  so -neither 
gained  much  information. 

Tom  did  gather,  however,  that  the  giants  were 
out  on  an  early  hunt  when  they  had  discovered 
our  friends,  and  their  chief  town  lay  about  half 
a  day's  journey  off  in  the  jungle.  The  path  along 
which  they  proceeded,  was  better  than  the  forest 
trails,  and  showed  signs  of  being  frequently  used. 

"It  doesn't  seem  possible  that  we  are  really 
among  giants,  Tom,"  spoke  Ned,  as  they  rode 
along.  "I  hardly  believed  there  were  giants." 

"There  always  have  been  giants,"  declared  the 
young  inventor.  "I  read  about  them  in  an  en- 


138  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

cyclopedia  before  I  started  on  this  trip.  Of 
course  there's  lots  of  wild  stories  about  giants, 
but  there  have  really  been  some  very  big  men. 
Take  the  skeleton  in  the  museum  of  Trinity  Col- 
lege, Dublin.  It  is  eight  feet  and  a  half  in  height, 
and  the  living  man  must  have  even  taller.  There 
was  a  giant  named  O'Brien,  and  his  skeleton  is 
in  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  of 
England — that  one  is  eight  feet  two  inches  high, 
while  there  are  reliable  records  to  show  that, 
when  living,  O'Brien  was  two  inches  taller  than 
that.  In  fact,  according  to  the  books,  there 
have  been  a  number  of  giants  nine  feet  high." 

"Then  these  chaps  aren't  so  wonderful,"  re- 
plied Ned. 

"Oh,  we  haven't  seen  them  all  yet.  We  may 
find  some  bigger  than  these  fellows,  though  any 
one  of  these  would  be  a  prize  for  a  museum. 
Not  a  one  is  less  than  eight  feet,  and  if  we  could 
get  one  say  ten  feet — that  would  be  a  find." 

"Rather  an  awkward  one,"  commented  Ned. 

It  did  not  seem  possible  that  they  were  really 
in  giant  land,  yet  such  was  the  fact.  Of  course 
the  country  itself  was  no  different  from  any  other 
part  of  the  jungle,  for  merely  because  big  men 
lived  in  it  did  not  make  the  trees  or  plants  an^ 
larger. 

"I  tell  you  how  I  account  for  it,"  said  Tom, 


IN  THE  "PALACE"  OF  THE  KING        139 

as  they  traveled  on.  "These  men  originally  be- 
longed to  a  race  of  people  noted  for  their  great 
size.  Then  they  must  have  lived  under  favor- 
able conditions,  had  plenty  of  flesh  and  bone- 
forming  food,  and  after  several  generations  they 
gradually  grew  larger.  You  know  that  by  feed- 
ing the  right  kind  of  food  to  animals  you  can 
make  them  bigger,  while  if  they  get  the  wrong 
kind  they  are  runts,  or  dwarfs." 

"Oh,  yes;  that's  a  well-known  fact,"  chimed 
in  Mr.  Damon. 

"Then  why  not  with  human  beings?"  went  on 
[Tom.  "There's  nothing  wonderful  in  this." 

"No,  but  it  will  be  wonderful  if  we  get  away 
with  one  of  these  giants,"  spoke  Ned  grimly. 

Further  talk  was  interrupted  by  a  sudden 
shouting  on  the  part  of  the  big  men.  Oom  made 
some  rapid  motions  to  Tom,  and  a  little  later 
they  emerged  from  the  woods  upon  a  large, 
grassy  plain,  on  the  other  side  of  which  could  be 
seen  a  cluster  of  big  grass  and  mud  huts. 

"There  is  the  city  of  the  giants!"  cried  Tom, 
and  so  it  proved,  a  little  later,  when  they  got  to  it. 

Now  there  was  nothing  remarkable  about  this 
city  or  native  town.  It  was  just  like  any  other  in 
the  wilder  parts  of  South  America  or  Africa. 
There  was  a  central  place,  where,  doubtless,  the 
natives  gathered  on  market  days,  and  from  this 


140  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

the  huts  of  the  inhabitants  stretched  out  in  irw 
regular  lines,  like  streets.  Off  to  one  side  of  the 
"market  square,"  as  Tom  called  it,  was  a  large 
hut,  surrounded  by  several  smaller  ones,  and  from 
the  manner  in  which  it  was  laid  out,  and  deco- 
rated, it  was  evident  that  this  was  the  "palace"  of 
the  king,  or  chief  ruler. 

"Say,  look  at  that  fellow!"  cried  Ned,  pointing 
to  a  giant  who  was  just  entering  the  "palace"  as 
Tom  dubbed  the  big  hut.  "He  looks  eleven  feet 
if  he's  an  inch." 

"I  believe  you!"  cried  Tom.  "Say,  I  wonder 
how  big  the  king  is?" 

"I  don't  know,  but  he  must  be  a  top-notcher. 
I  wonder  what  will  happen  to  us?" 

Oom,  who  had  Tom  and  his  party  in  charge, 
led  them  to  the  "palace"  and  it  was  evident  that 
they  were  going  to  be  presented  to  the  chief  or 
native  king.  Back  of  our  friends  stretched  out 
their  pack  train,  the  beasts  carrying  the  boxes  and 
bales.  Surrounding  them  were  nearly  all  the 
inhabitants  of  the  giants'  town,  and  when  the 
cavalcade  had  come  to  a  halt  in  front  of  the 
"palace,"  Oom  raised  his  voice  in  a  mighty  shout. 
It  was  taken  up  by  the  populace,  and  then  every 
one  of  them  knelt  down. 

"I  guess  His  Royal  Highness  is  about  to  ap- 
pear," said  Tom  grimly. 


IN  THE  "PALACE"  OF  THE  KING        141 

"Yes,  maybe  we'd  better  kneel,  too,"  spoke 
Ned. 

"Not  much!  We're  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  and  we  don't  kneel  to  anybody.  I'm 
going  to  stand  up. " 

"So  am  I!"  said  Mr.  Damon. 

An  instant  later  the  grass  mat  that  formed  the 
front  door  of  the  "palace"  was  drawn  aside,  and 
there  stood  confronting  our  hero  and  his  friends, 
the  King  of  Giant  Land.  And  a  mighty  king 
was  he  in  size,  for  he  must  have  been  a  shade 
over  ten  feet  tall,  while  on  either  side  of  him 
was  a  man  nearly  as  big  as  himself. 

Once  more  Oom  boomed  out  a  mighty  shout 
and,  kneeling  as  the  giants  were,  they  took  it  up, 
repeating  it  three  times.  The  king  raised  his 
hand  as  though  in  blessing  upon  his  people,  and 
then,  eyeing  Tom  and  his  three  friends  he 
beckoned  them  to  approach. 

"He  wants  to  see  us  at  close  range,"  whispered 
the  young  inventor.  "Come  on,  Ned  and  Mr. 
Damon.  Trail  along,  Eradicate." 

"Good — good  land  ob  massy!"  stammered  the 
colored  man.  And  then  the  little  party  advanced 
into  the  "palace"  of  the  giant  king. 


CHAPTER   XVI 

THE  RIVAL  CIRCUS  MAN 

TOM  SWIFT  gazed  fearlessly  into  the  face  of/ 
the  giant  ruler  who  confronted  him.  The  young 
inventor  said  later  that  he  had  made  up  his  mind 
that  to  show  no  fear  was  the  only  way  of  im- 
pressing the  big  king,  for  surely  no  show  of 
strength  could  have  done  it.  With  one  hand 
the  giant  could  have  crushed  the  life  from  our 
hero.  But  evidently  he  had  no  such  intentions, 
for  after  gazing  curiously  at  the  four  travelers 
who  stood  before  him,  and  looking  for  some  time 
at  the  honest,  black  face  of  Eradicate,  the  king 
made  a  motion  for  them  to  sit  down.  They  did, 
upon  grass  mats  in  the  big  hut  that  formed  the 
palace  of  the  ruler. 

It  was  not  a  very  elaborate  place,  but  then  the 
king's  wants  were  few  and  easily  satisfied.  The 
place  was  clean,  Tom  was  glad  to  note. 

The  king,  who  was  addressed  by  his  subjects 
as  Kosk,  as  nearly  as  Tom  could  get  it,  asked 
some  questions  of  Oom,  who  seemed  to  be  the 
chief  of  the  hunters.  Thereupon  the  man  who 

142 


THE  RIVAL  CIRCUS  MAN  143 

had  looked  into  Tom's  and  Ned's  tent  that  morn- 
ing, and  who  had  followed  them  into  the  palace, 
began  a  recital  of  how  he  had  found  the  little 
travelers.  Though  Tom  and  his  friends  could 
not  understand  a  word  of  the  language,  it  was 
comparatively  easy  to  follow  the  narrative  by 
the  gestures  used. 

Then  the  king  asked  several  questions,  others 
of  the  hunting  party  were  sent  for  and  quizzed, 
and  finally  the  ruler  seemed  satisfied,  for  he 
rattled  off  a  string  of  talk  in  his  deep,  booming 
voice. 

Truly  he  was  a  magnificent  specimen  of  man- 
Jiood,  being  as  I  have  said,  about  ten  feet  tall, 
and  built  in  proportion.  On  either  side  of  him, 
upon  rude  benches  covered  with  soft  jaguar  skins, 
$at  two  men,  evidently  his  brothers,  for  they 
looked  much  like  the  king.  One  was  called  Tola 
and  the  other  Koku,  for  the  ruler  addressed  them 
from  time  to  time,  and  seemed  to  be  asking  their 
advice. 

"They're  making  up  their  minds  what  to  do 
with  us,"  murmured  Tom.  "I  only  hope  they  let 
us  stay  long  enough  to  learn  the  language,  and 
then  I  can  make  an  offer  to  take  one  back  to  the 
United  States  with  me." 

"Jove!  Wouldn't  it  be  great  if  you  could  get 
the  king!"  exclaimed  Ned. 


144  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Oh,  that's  too  much,  but  I'd  like  one  of  his 
brothers.  They're  each  a  good  nine  feet  tall,  and 
they  must  be  as  strong  as  horses." 

In  contrast  to  some  giants  of  history,  whose 
only  claim  to  notoriety  lay  in  their  height,  these 
giants  were  very  powerful.  Many  giants  have 
flabby  muscles,  but  these  of  South  America  were 
like  athletes.  Tom  realized  this  when  there  sud- 
denly entered  the  audience  chamber  a  youth  of 
about  our  hero's  age,  but  fully  seven  feet  tall, 
and  very  big.  He  was  evidently  the  king's  son, 
for  he  wore  a  jaguar  skin,  which  seemed  to  be 
a  badge  of  royalty.  He  had  seemingly  entered 
without  permission,  to  see  the  curious  strangers, 
for  the  king  spoke  quickly  to  him,  and  then  to 
Tola,  who  with  a  friendly  grin  on  his  big  face 
lifted  the  lad  with  one  hand  and  deposited  him 
in  a  room  that  opened  out  of  the  big  chamber. 

"Did  you  see  that!"  cried  Ned.  "He  lifted 
him  as  easily  as  you  or  I  would  a  cat,  and  I'll 
bet  that  fellow  weighed  close  to  four  hundred 
pounds,  Tom." 

"I  should  say  so!    It's  great!" 

The  audience  was  now  at  an  end,  and  Tom 
thought  it  was  about  time  to  make  some  sort  of 
a  present  to  the  king  to  get  on  good  terms  with 
.kirn.  He  looked  out  of  the  palace  hut  and  saw 
that  their  pack  animals  were  close  at  hand.  Near- 


THE  RIVAL  CIRCUS  MAN  145 

by  was  one  that  had  on  its  back  a  box  containing 
a  phonograph  and  some  records. 

Making  signs  that  he  wanted  to  bring  in  some 
of  his  baggage,  Tom  stepped  out  of  the  hut,  tell- 
ing his  friends  to  wait  for  him.  The  king  and 
the  other  giants  watched  the  lad  curiously,  but 
did  not  endeavor  to  stop  him. 

"I'm  going  to  give  him  a  little  music,"  went 
on  the  young  inventor  as  he  adjusted  the  phono- 
graph, and  slipped  in  a  record  of  a  lively  dance 
air.  His  motions  were  curiously  watched,  and 
when  the  phonograph  started  and  there  was  a 
whirr  of  the  mechanism,  some  of  the  giants  who 
had  crowded  into  the  king's  audience  chamber, 
showed  a  disposition  to  run.  But  a  word  of 
command  from  their  ruler  stopped  them. 

Suddenly  the  music  started  and,  coming  forth 
as  it  did  from  the  phonograph  horn,  in  the  midst 
of  that  hut,  in  which  stood  the  silence-awed 
giants,  it  was  like  a  bolt  of  lightning  from  the 
clear  sky. 

At  first  the  king  and  all  the  others  seemed 
struck  dumb,  and  then  there  arose  a  mighty  shout, 
and  one  word  was  repeated  over  and  over  again. 
It  sounded  like  "Chackalok!  Chackalok!"  and 
later  Tom  learned  that  it  meant  wizard,  magician 
or  something  like  that. 

Shout  after  shout  rent  the  air,  and  was  taken 


^146  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

up  by  those  outside,  for  through  the  open  door 
the  strains  of  music  floated.  The  giants  seemed 
immensely  pleased,  after  their  first  fright,  and 

•  suddenly  the  king,  coming  down  from  his  throne, 
stood  with  his  big  ear  as  nearly  inside  the  horn 

>  as  he  could  get  it. 

A  great  grin  spread  over  his  face  and  then, 
approaching  Tom,  he  leaned  over,  touched  him 
once  on  the  forehead,  and  uttered  a  word.  At 
this  sign  of  royal  favor  the  other  giants  at  once 
bowed  to  Tom. 

"Say,"  cried  Ned,  "you've  got  his  number  all 
right!  You're  one  of  the  royal  family  now, 


"It  looks  like  it.  Well,  I'm  glad  of  it,  for  I 
want  to  be  on  friendly  terms  with  His  Royal 
Highness." 

Once  more  the  king  addressed  Tom,  and  the 
head  hunter,  motioning  to  Tom  and  his  friends, 
led  them  out  of  the  palace,  and  to  a  large  hut 
not  far  off.  This,  he  made  himself  understood 
by  signs,  was  to  be  their  resting  place,  and  truly 
it  was  not  a  bad  home,  for  it  was  well  made.  It 
had  simple  furniture  in  it,  low  couches  covered 
with  skins,  stools,  and  there  were  several  rooms 
to  it. 

Calling  in  authorative  tones  to  his  fellow  hunt- 
fers,  Oom  had  them  take  the  packs  off  the  beasts 


THE  RIVAL  CIRCUS  MAN  147 

of  burdens  and  soon  the  boxes,  bales  and  pack- 
ages were  carried  into  the  big  hut,  which  was 
destined  to  be  the  abiding  place  of  our  friends 
for  some  time.  The  animals  were  then  led  away. 

"Well,  here  we  are,  safe  and  sound,  with  all 
our  possessions  about  us,"  commented  Tom, 
when  all  but  Oom  had  withdrawn.  "I  guess 
well  make  out  all  right  in  giant  land.  I  wonder 
what  they  have  to  eat?  Or  perhaps  we'd  better 
tackle  some  of  our  own  grub." 

He  looked  at  Oom,  who  laughed  gleefully. 
Then  Tom  rubbed  his  stomach,  opened  his  mouth 
and  pointed  to  it  and  said:  "We'd  like  to  eat — » 
we're  hungry!" 

Oom  boomed  out  something  in  his  bass  voice, 
grinned  cheerfully,  and  hurried  out.  A  little 
later  he  came  back,  and  following  him,  a  number 
of  giant  women.  Each  one  bore  a  wooden  platter 
or  slab  of  bark  which  answered  for  a  plate.  The 
plates  were  covered  with  broad  palm  leaves,  and 
when  they  had  been  set  down  on  low  benches, 
and  the  coverings  removed,  our  friends  saw  they 
had  food  in  abundance. 

There  was  some  boiled  lamb,  some  roasted 
fowls,  some  cereal  that  looked  like  boiled  rice, 
some  sweet  potatoes,  a  number  of  other  things 
which  could  only  be  guessed  at,  and  a  big  gourd 
filled  with  something  that  smelled  like  sweet  cider. 


I48  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Say,  this  is  a  feast  all  right,  after  what  we've 
been  living  on!"  cried  Tom. 

Once  more  Oom  laughed  joyfully,  pointing  to 
the  food  and  to  our  friends  in  turn. 

"Oh,  we'll  eat  all  right!"  exclaimed  Tom. 
"Don't  worry  about  that!" 

!The  good-natured  giant  showed  them  where 
they  could  find  rude  wooden  dishes  and  table  im- 
plements, and  then  he  left  them  alone.  It  was 
rather  awkward  at  first,  for  though  the  bench  or 
table  looked  low  in  comparison  to  the  size  of  the 
room,  yet  it  was  very  high,  to  allow  for  the 
long  legs  of  the  giants  getting  under  it. 

"If  we  stay  here  long  enough  we  can  saw  off 
the  table  legs,"  said  the  young  inventor.  "Now 
for  our  first  meal  in  giant  land. " 

They  were  just  helping  themselves  when  there 
arose  a  great  shouting  outside. 

"I  wonder  what's  up  now?"  asked  Tom,  paus- 
ing with  upraised  fork. 

"Maybe  the  king  is  coming  to  see  us,"  sug- 
gested Ned. 

"I'll  look,"  volunteeered  Mr.  Damon,  as  he 
went  to  the  door.  Then  he  called  quickly: 

"Tom!  Ned!  Look!  It's  that  minister  we 
met  on  the  ship — Reverend  Josiah  Blinderpool! 
How  in  the  world  did  he  ever  get  here?  And 
haw  strangely  he's  dressed  J" 


THE  RIVAL  CIRCUS  MAN  149 

Well  might  Mr.  Damon  say  this,  for  the  sup- 
posed clergyman  was  attired  in  a  big  checked 
suit,  a  red  vest,  a  tall  hat  and  white  canvas  shoes. 
In  fact  he  was  almost  like  some  theatrical  per- 
former. 

The  gaudily-dressed  man  was  accompanied  by 
two  natives,  and  all  rode  mules,  and  there  were 
three  other  animals,  laden  with  packs  on  either 
side. 

"What's  his  game?"  mused  Ned. 

The  answer  came  quickly  and  from  the  man 
himself.  Riding  forward  toward  the  king's  hut 
or  palace,  while  the  populace  of  wondering  giants 
followed  behind,  the  man  raised  his  voice  in  a 
triumphant  announcement. 

"Here  at  last!"  he  cried.  "In  giant  land!  And 
I'm  ahead  of  Tom  Swift  for  all  his  tricks.  I've 
got  Tom  Swift  beat  a  mile." 

"Oh,  you  have!"  shouted  our  hero  with  a 
sudden  resolve,  as  he  stepped  into  view.  "Well, 
you've  got  another  guess  coming.  I'm  here  ahead 
of  you,  and  there's  standing  room  only." 

"Tom  Swift!"  gasped  the  rival  circus  maiL 
*Tom  Swift  here  in  ahead  of  me!" 


CHAPTER  XVII 

HELD  CAPTIVES 

THERE  was  a  great  commotion  among  the 
giants.  Men,  women  and  children  ran  to  and 
fro,  and  a  number  of  the  largest  of  the  big  men 
could  be  seen  hurrying  into  the  palace  hut  of 
King  Kosk.  If  the  arrival  of  Tom  and  his 
friends  had  created  a  surprise  it  was  more  than 
doubled  when  the  circus  man,  and  his  small  car- 
avan, advanced  into  the  giants'  city.  His  ap- 
proach had  been  unheralded  because  the  giants 
were  so  taken  up  with  Tom  and  his  party  that  no 
one  thought  to  guard  the  paths  leading  into  the 
village.  And,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  giants  were 
so  isolated,  they  were  so  certain  of  their  own 
strength,  and  they  had  been  unmolested  so  many 
years,  that  they  did  not  dream  of  danger. 

As  for  our  hero,  he  stood  in  the  hut  gazing 
at  his  rival,  while  Hank  Delby,  in  turn,  stared  at 
the  young  inventor.  Then  Hank  dismounted 
from  his  mule  and  approached  Tom's  hut. 

"Bless  my  railroad  ticket!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Damon.  "This  is  a  curious  state  of  affairs! 
iWhat  in  the  world  are  we  to  do,  Tom?" 

ISO 


HELD  CAPTIVES  151 

"I  don't  know,  I'm  sure.  We'll  have  to  wait 
until  we  see  what  he  does.  He's  been  following 
us  all  along.  He  was  that  fake  minister  on  the 
boat.  It's  a  wonder  we  didn't  get  on  to  him.  I 
believe  he's  been  trying  to  learn  our  secret  ever 
since  Mr.  Preston  warned  us  about  him.  Now 
lie's  here  and  he'll  probably  try  to  spoil  our 
chances  for  getting  a  giant  so  that  he  may  get 
one  for  himself.  Perhaps  Andy  Foger  gave  him 
a  tip  about  our  plans." 

"But  can't  we  stop  him?"  asked  Ned. 

"I'm  going  to  try!"  exclaimed  Tom  grimly. 

"Here  he  comes,"  spoke  Mr.  Damon  quickly. 
"I  wonder  what  he  wants?" 

Hank  Delby  had  started  toward  the  big  hut 
that  sheltered  our  friends,  while  the  gathered 
crowd  of  curious  giants  looked  on  and  wondered 
what  the  arrival  of  two  white  parties  so  close 
together  could  mean. 

"Well,  what  do  you  want?"  asked  Tom,  when 
his  rival  had  come  within  speaking  distance. 

"There's  no  use  beating  about  the  bush  witfi 
you,  Tom  Swift,"  was  the  frank  answer.  "I  may 
as  well  out  with  it.  I  came  after  a  giant,  and  I'm 
going  to  get  one  for  Mr.  Waydell." 

"Then  you  took  advantage  of  our  trail,  and 
followed  us?"  asked  the  young  inventor. 

"Oh,  you  can  put  it  that  way  if  you  like," 


152  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

replied  Delby  calmly.  "I  have  followed  you,  and 
a  hard  time  I've  had  of  it.  I  tried  to  do  it  quietly, 
but  you  got  on  to  my  tricks.  However  it  doesn't 
matter.  I'm  here  now,  and  I'm  going  to  beat  you 
out  if  I  can." 

"I  remember  now!"  exclaimed  Ned  whispering 
in  Tom's  ear,  "he  was  disguised  as  one  of  the 
mule  drivers  and  you  fired  him  because  he  had  a 
revolver.  Don't  you  remember,  Tom?" 

"That's  right!"  exclaimed  the  young  inventor 
as  he  noted  the  face  and  form  of  Delby  more 
closely.  Then  our  hero  added:  "You  played  a 
low-down  trick,  Mr.  Delby,  and  it  won't  do  you 
any  good.  I  caught  you  trying  to  sneak  along 
in  my  company  and  I'll  catch  you  again.  I'm 
here  first,  and  I've  got  the  best  right  to  try  and 
get  a  giant  for  Mr.  Preston,  and  if  you  had  any 
idea  of  fair  play " 

"All's  fair  in  this  business,  Tom  Swift,"  was 
the  quick  answer.  "I'm  going  to  do  my  best  to 
beat  you,  and  I  expect  you  to  do  your  best  to 
beat  me.  I  can't  speak  any  fairer  than  that.  It's, 
war  between  us,  from  now  on,  and  you  might  as 
well  know  it.  One  thing  I  will  promise  you,( 
though,  if  there's  any  danger  of  you  or  your 
party  getting  hurt  by  these  big  men  I'll  fight  on 
your  side.  But  I  guess  they  are  too  gentle  to 
fight." 


HELD  CAPTIVES  153 

"We  can  look  after  ourselves,"  declared  Tom. 
"And  since  it's  to  be  war  between  us  look  out  for 
yourself." 

"Don't  worry!"  exclaimed  Tom's  rival  with  a 
laugh.  "I've  gone  through  a  lot  to  get  here,  and 
I'm  not  going  to  give  up  without  a  struggle.  I 
guess " 

But  he  did  not  finish  his  sentence  for  at  that 
moment  Oom,  the  big  hunting  giant,  came  up 
behind  him,  tapped  him  on  the  shoulder,  and 
pointed  to  the  king's  hut,  motioning  to  indicate 
that  Mr.  Delby  was  wanted  there. 

"Very  good,"  said  the  circus  agent  in  what  he 
tried  to  make  sound  like  a  jolly  voice,  "I'm  to  call 
on  his  majesty;  am  I?  Here's  where  I  beat  you 
to  it,  Tom  Swift." 

Tom  did  not  answer,  but  there  was  a  worried 
look  on  his  face,  as  he  turned  to  join  his  friends 
in  the  big  hut.  And,  as  he  looked  from  a  win- 
dow, and  saw  Delby  being  led  into  the  presence 
of  Kosk,  Tom  could  hear  the  strains  of  the  big 
phonograph  he  had  presented  to  the  king. 

"I  guess  his  royal  highness  will  remain  friends 
with  us,"  said  Ned  with  a  smile,  as  he  heard  the 
music.  "He  can  see  what  a  lot  of  presents  and 
other  things  we  have,  and  as  for  that  Delby,  he 
iloesn't  seem  to  have  much  of  anything." 

"Oh,  I  haven't  shown  half  the  things  I  have  as 


154  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

yet,"  spoke  Tom.  "But  I  don't  like  this,  just  the 
same.  Those  giants  may  turn  from  us,  and  favor 
him  on  the  slightest  pretence.  I  guess  we've  got 
our  work  cut  out  for  us." 

"Then  let's  plan  some  way  to  beat  him,"  sug- 
gested Mr.  Damon.  "Look  over  your  goods, 
Tom,  and  make  the  king  a  present  that  will  bind 
his  friendship  to  us." 

"I  believe  I  will,"  decided  the  young  inventor 
and  then  he  and  Ned  began  overhauling  the  boxes 
and  bales,  while  a  crowd  of  curious  giants  stood 
without  their  hut,  and  another  throng  surrounded 
the  palace  of  the  giant  king. 

"There  goes  Delby  out  to  get  something  from 
his  baggage,"  announced  Ned,  looking  from  the 
window.  Tom  saw  his  rival  taking  something 
from  one  of  the  packs  slung  across  the  back  of  a 
mule.  Soon  the  circus  agent  hurried  back  into 
the  king's  hut,  and  a  moment  later  there  was 
heard  the  strains  of  a  banjo  being  picked  by  an 
unpracticed  hand.  It  was  succeeded  by  a  rattling 
tune  played  in  good  style. 

"Bless  my  fiddlestick!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Damon. 
"Does  your  phonograph  have  a  banjo  record, 
Tom?" 

"No,"  was  the  somewhat  hesitating  answer  of 
the  young  inventor.  "Delby  who  can  play  a 
banjo  himself  must  have  given  Kosk  one  for  a 


HELD  CAPTIVES  155 

present,  and,  like  a  child,  the  king  is  amused  by 
the  latest  novelty.  So  far  he  has  scorred  one  on 
us,"  he  added,  as  once  more  they  heard  the  un- 
melodious  strains  of  the  banjo  slowly  picked. 
"The  king  is  evidently  learning  to  play  the  in- 
strument, and  he'd  rather  have  that  than  a  phono- 
graph which  only  winds  up." 

"But  haven't  you  some  other  things  you  can 
give  the  king  to  off-set  the  banjo?"  asked  Mr. 
Damon. 

"Plenty  of  them,  replied  Tom.  "But  if  I  give 
him — say  a  toy  steam  engine,  for  I  have  one 
among  our  things — what  is  to  prevent  Delby  giv- 
ing him  some  other  novelty  that  will  take  his 
attention?  In  that  way  we'll  sea-saw  back  and 
forth,  and  I  guess  Delby  has  had  more  experience 
in  this  business  than  I  have.  It's  going  to  be  a 
question  which  of  us  gets  a  giant." 

"Bless  my  reserved  seat  ticket!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Damon.  "I  never  heard  of  such  a  thing!  But, 
Tom,  I'm  sure  we'll  win  out." 

"Get  something  startling  to  give  the  king,"  ad- 
vised Ned,  and  Tom  began  opening  one  of  the 
boxes  that  had  been  transported  with  such  labor 
from  the  coast. 

"Delby  had  much  better  luck  with  his  mule 
drivers  than  we  did  Tom,"  remarked  Ned  as  he 
saw  the  two  natives  standing  by  the  pack  animals 


156  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

of  the  rival  circus  man.  "They  evidently  didn't 
get  scared  off  by  the  giants." 

"No,  but  probably  he  didn't  tell  them  where 
they  were  headed  for.  Though,  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  I  don't  believe  any  one  has  anything  to  feal 
from  these  big  men.  All  they  ask  is  to  be  let 
alone.  They're  not  at  all  warlike,  and  I  don't 
believe  they'd  attack  the  other  natives.  But 
probably  their  size  makes  them  feared,  and  when 
our  drivers  heard  the  word  'giant'  they  simply 
wilted." 

"Guess  you're  right.  But  come  on,  Tom.  If 
we're  going  to  make  the  king  a  present  that  will 
open  his  eyes,  and  get  him  on  our  side  instead  of 
Delby's,  we'd  better  be  getting  at  it." 

"I  will.  This  is  what  I'm  going  to  give  him," 
and  Tom  brought  out  from  a  box  a  small  toy  cir- 
cus, with  many  performing  animals  and  acrobats, 
the  whole  being  worked  by  a  small  steam  engine 
that  burned  alcohol  for  fuel.  A  little  water  put 
in  the  boiler  of  the  toy  engine,  a  lighting  of  the 
alcohol  wick  and  there  would  be  a  toy  that  even 
a  youngster  of  the  United  States  might  be  proud 
to  own. 

"Mah  land  a  massy!"  exclaimed  Eradicate  as 
Tom  got  the  apparatus  ready  to  work.  "Dat  shore 
will  please  him!" 


HELD  CAPTIVES 

"It  ought  to,"  replied  the  young  inventor. 
"Come  on,  now  I'm  ready." 

Delby  had  not  yet  come  from  the  king's  hut, 
and  as  Tom  and  his  friends,  bearing  the  new  toy, 
were  about  to  leave  the  structure  that  had  been 
set  aside  for  their  use,  they  saw  a  crowd  of  the 
giant  men  approaching.  Each  of  the  big  men 
carried  a  club  and  a  spear. 

"Bless  my  eye  glasses!"  gasped  Mr.  Damon. 
"Something  is  wrong.  What  can  it  be?" 

He  had  his  answer  a  moment  later.  With  a 
firm  but  gentle  motion  the  chief  giant  shoved  our 
four  friends  back  into  the  hut,  and  then  pulled  the 
grass  mat  over  the  opening.  Then,  as  Tom  and 
the  others  could  see  by  looking  from  a  crack,  he 
and  several  others  took  their  position  in  front, 
while  other  giants  went  to  the  various  windows, 
stationing  themselves  outside  like  sentries  around 
a  guard  house. 

"Bless  my "  began  Mr.  Damon,  but  words 

failed  him. 

"We're  prisoners!"  gasped  Ned. 

"It  looks  like  it,"  admitted  Tom  grimly. 
"Evidently  Delby  has  carried  out  his  threat  and 
set  the  king  against  us.  We  are  to  be  held  captives 
here,  and  he  can  do  as  he  pleases.  Oh, 
didn't  I  think  sooner." 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

TOM'S    MYSTERIOUS    BOX 

THE  young  inventor  walked  slowly  back  to  the 
middle  of  the  hut — a  prison  now  it  was — and  sat 
down  on  a  bench.  The  others  followed  his  ex- 
ample, and  the  elaborate  toy,  with  which  they  had 
hoped  to  win  the  king's  favor,  was  laid  aside. 
For  a  moment  there  was  silence  in  the  structure — • 
a  silence  broken  only  by  the  pacing  up  and  down 
of  the  giant  guards  outside.  Then  Eradicate 
spoke. 

"Massa  Tom,"  began  the  aged  negro,  "can't 
we  git  away  from  heah?" 

"It  doesn't  seem  so,  Rad." 

"Can't  we  shoot  some  of  dem  giants  wif  de 
'lectric  guns,  an*  carry  a  couple  ob  'em  off  aftef 
we  stun  'em  like?" 

"No,  Rad;  I'm  afraid  violent  measures  won't 
(do,  though  now  that  you  speak  of  the  guns  I 
think  that  we  had  better  get  them  ready." 

"You're  not  going  to  shoot  any  of  them,  are 
you,  Tom?"  asked  Mr.  Damon  quickly. 

158 


TOM'S  MYSTERIOUS  BOX 


159 


"No,  but  if  they  continue  to  turn  against  us  as 
easily  as  they  have,  there  is  no  telling  what  may| 
happen.  If  they  attack  us  we  will  have  to  defend 
ourselves.  But  I  think  they  are  too  gentle  for 
that,  unless  they  are  unduly  aroused  by  what 
misstatements  Hank  Delby  may  make  against  us." 

"Misstatements?"  inquired  Ned. 

"Yes.  I  don't  doubt  but  what  he  told  the  king 
a  lot  of  stuff  that  isn't  true,  to  cause  his  majesty 
to  make  us  captives  here.  Probably  he  said  we 
came  to  destroy  the  giant  city  with  magic,  or 
something  like  that,  and  he  represented  himself 
as  a  simple  traveler.  He's  used  to  that  sort  of 
business,  for  he  has  often  tried  to  get  ahead  of 
Mr.  Preston  in  securing  freaks  or  valuable  ani- 
mals for  the  circus.  He  wants  to  make  it  look 
bad  for  us,  and  good  for  himself.  So  far  he  has 
succeeded.  But  I've  got  a  plan." 

"What  is  it?"  asked  Mr.  Damon. 

"I'll  tell  you  when  I've  got  it  more  worked  out. 
The  thing  to  do  now  is  to  get  in  shape  to  stand 
off  the  giants  if  they  should  attack'  us.  This  hut 
is  pretty  strong,  and  we  can  risk  a  siege  in  here. 
Let's  arrange  the  boxes  and  bales  into  *  sort  of 
breastwork,  and  then  we'll  take  the  electric  rifles 
inside." 

This  was  soon  done,  and,  though  there  was 
considerable  noise  attending  the  moving  about  o£ 


l6o  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

the  boxes  and  bales,  the  giant  guards  did  not  seem 
at  all  alarmed.  They  did  not  even  take  the 
trouble  to  stop  the  work,  though  they  looked  in 
the  windows.  In  a  short  time  there  was  a  sort 
of  hollow  square  formed  in  the  middle  of  the  big 
main  room,  and  inside  of  this  our  friends  could 
give  battle. 

"And  now  for  my  plan  of  teaching  these  giants 
a  lesson,"  said  Tom,  when  this  work  was  finished. 
"Ned,  help  me  open  this  box,"  and  he  indicated 
one  with  his  initials  on  in  red  letters. 

"That's  the  same  one  you  saved  from  the  fire 
in  the  ship,"  commented  Ned. 

"Yes,  and  I  can't  put  it  to  just  exactly  the  use 
I  intended,  as  the  situation  has  changed — for  the 
worse  I  may  say.  But  this  box  will  answer  a 
good  purpose,"  and  Tom  and  Ned  proceeded  to 
open  the  mysterious  case  which  the  young  in« 
ventor  had  transported  with  such  care. 

"Bless  my  cannon  cracker!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Damon  who  watched  them.  "You're  as  careful 
of  that  as  if  it  contained  dynamite." 

"It  does  contain  something  like  that,"  answered 
Tom.  "It  has  some  blasting  powder  in,  and  I 
was  going  to  use  it  to  show  the  giants  how 
little  their  strength  would  prevail  against  the 
power  which  the  white  man  could  secure  from 
some  harmless  looking  powder.  There  are  also 


TOM'S  MYSTERIOUS  BOX  i6r 

a  lot  of  fireworks  in  the  box,  and  I  intend  to  use 
them  to  scare  these  big  men.  That's  why  I  was 
so  afraid  when  I  heard  that  there  was  a  blaze 
near  my  box.  I  was  worried  for  fear  the  ship 
would  be  blown  up.  But  I  can't  use  the  blasting 
powder — at  least  not  now.  But  we'll  give  these 
giants  an  idea  of  what  Fourth  of  July  looks  like. 
Come  on,  Ned,  we'll  take  a  look  and  see  from 
which  window  it  will  be  safest  to  set  off  the 
rockets  and  other  things,  as  I  don't  want  to  set 
fire  to  any  of  the  grass  huts." 

Eradicate  and  Mr.  Damon  looked  on  wonder- 
ingly  while  Tom  and  his  chum  got  out  the  pack- 
ages of  fireworks  which  had  been  kept  safe  and 
dry.  As  for  the  giant  guards,  if  they  saw  through 
the  windows  what  was  going  on,  they  made  no 
effort  to  stop  Tom. 

Tom  had  brought  along  a  good  collection  of 
sky  rockets,  aerial  bombs,  Roman  candles  and 
similiar  things,  together  with  the  blasting  powder. 
The  latter  was  put  in  a  safe  place  in  a  side  room, 
and  then,  with  some  boards,  the  young  inventor 
and  his  chum  proceeded  to  make  a  sort  of  firing 
stand.  One  big  window  opened  out  toward  a 
vacant  stretch  of  woods  into  which  it  would  not 
be  dangerous  to  aim  the  fireworks. 

Building  the  stand  took  some  time,  and  they 
knocked  off  to  make  a  meal  from  the  food  that 


162  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

had  been  brought,  and  which  they  had  been  about 
to  eat  when  the  circus  man  had  appeared.  The 
'food  was  good,  and  it  made  them  feel  better. 

"I  hope  they  won't  forget  us  to-morrow,"  ob- 
served Tom,  for  there  was  enough  of  the  first 
ineal  left  for  supper.  "But  if  they  do  we  have 
some  food  of  our  own/' 

"Oh,  I  don't  think  they  mean  to  starve  us," 
remarked  Ned.  "I  think  they  are  just  acting  on 
suggestions  from  that  circus  man." 

"Perhaps,"  agreed  Tom.  "Well,  they  may 
sing  another  tune  when  we  get  through  witK 
them." 

As  night  approached  the  giant  guards  about 
the  hut  were  changed,  and  again  the  women  came, 
bearing  platters  of  food.  There  was  plenty  of  it, 
showing  that  the  king,  however  fickle  his  friend- 
ship might  be,  did  not  intend  to  starve  his  cap- 
tives. Tom  and  his  friends  had  not  seen  Delby 
come  out  of  the  royal  palace,  and  they  concluded 
that  he  was  still  with  his  giant  majesty. 

"Is  it  dark  enough  now,  Tom?"  asked  Ned  of 
his  chum,  as  they  sat  about  the  rude  wooden 
platform  which  they  had  made  to  hold  the  fire- 
works. "Shall  we  set  them  off?" 

"Pretty  soon  now.  Wait  until  it  gets  a  little 
Barker,  and  the  effect  will  be  better."  The  room 
was  dimly  lighted  by  a  small  portable  electric 


TOM'S  MYSTERIOUS  BOX  163 

lamp,  one  of  several  Tom  had  brought  along  in 
his  mysterious  box.  The  lamps  were  operated  by 
miniature  but  powerful  dry  batteries.  The  giant 
guards  were  still  outside,  but  they  showed  no  dis- 
position to  interfere  with  our  friends. 

"There's  something  going  on  at  the  palace," 
reported  Mr.  Damon,  who  was  watching  the  big 
hut.  "There  are  a  lot  of  giants  around  it  with 
torches." 

"Maybe  they're  going  to  escort  Delby  to  a  hui 
with  the  same  honors  they  paid  us,"  suggested 
pTom.  "If  they  do;  we'll  set  off  the  fireworks 
as  he  comes  out  and  maybe  they'll  think  he  is 
afflicted  with  bad  magic,  and  they'll  give  us  our 
freedom." 

"Good  idea!"  cried  Ned.  "Say,  that's  wnat 
they're  going  to  do,"  he  added  a  moment  later  as, 
in  the  glare  of  a  number  of  torches,  there  could 
be  seen  issuing  from  the  king's  palace,  the  two 
big  giants,  evidently  his  brothers.  Between  them 
was  the  figure  of  the  circus  man,  looking  like  a 
dwarf.  He  was  not  so  far  away  but  what  the 
smile  of  triumph  on  his  face  could  be  seen  as  he 
glanced  in  the  direction  of  the  darkened  hut 
where  Tom  and  his  friends  were  captives. 

"Now's  our  chance!"  cried  the  young  inventor. 
"Set  'em  off,  Ned.  You  help,  Mr.  Damon.  The 
more  noise  and  fuss  we  make  at  once,  the  more 


164  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

impressive  it  will  be.  Set  off  everything  in  sight !" 
There  was  a  flicker  of  matches  as  they  were 
applied  to  the  fuses,  and  then  a  splutter  of  sparks. 
An  instant  later  it  seemed  as  if  the  whole  heavens 
had  been  lighted  up. 

Sky  rockets  shot  screaming  toward  the  zenith, 
aerial  bombs  went  whirling  slantingly  upward 
amid  a  shower  of  sparks,  then  to  burst  with 
deafening  reports,  sending  out  string  after  string 
of  colored  lights.  Red  and  green  fire  gleamed, 
and  the  hot  balls  from  Roman  candles  burst  forth. 
There  was  a  whizz,  a  rush  and  a  roar.  Blinding 
flashes  and  startling  reports  followed  each  other 
as  Tom  and  his  friends  set  off  the  fireworks.  It 
was  like  the  Independence  Day  celebration  of 
some  little  country  village,  and  to  the  simple 
giants  it  must  have  seemed  as  if  a  volcano  had 
suddenly  gone  into  action. 

For  several  minutes  the  din  and  racket,  the 
glare  and  explosions,  kept  up,  pouring  out  of  the 
big  window  of  the  hut.  And  then,  as  the  last 
of  the  display  was  shot  off,  and  darkness  seemed 
to  settle  down  blacker  than  ever  over  the  giant 
village,  there  arose  howls  of  fear  and  terror  f ron* 
the  big  men  and  their  women  and  children.  They 
cried  aloud  in  their  thunderous  voices,  and  there, 
was  fear  in  every  cry. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

WEAK  GIANTS 

A  GREAT  silence  followed  the  u&tltig  off  of 
the  fireworks — silence  and  darkness —and  even 
the  circus  man  ceased  to  shout.  He  wanted  to 
see  what  the  effect  would  be.  So  did  Tom  and 
the  others.  When  their  eyes  had  become  used  to 
the  gloom  again,  after  the  glare  of  the  rockets 
and  bombs,  the  young  inventor  said*. 

"Look  out  of  the  windows,  Ned,  aiid  see  if 
tmr  guards  have  run  away." 

Ned  did  as  requested,  but  for  a  few  seconds 
he  could  make  out  nothing.  Then  he  cried  out: 

"They've  gone,  but  they're  coming  back  again, 
and  there  are  twice  as  many.  I  guess  they  don't 
want  us  to  escape,  Tom,  for  fear  we  may  do  a 
lot  of  damage." 

"Bless  my  hitching  post!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
"The  guards  doubled?  We  are  in  a  predicament, 
Tom." 

"Yes,  I'm  afraid  so.  The  fireworks  didn't  just 
have  the  effect  I  expected.  I  thought  they'd  be 

165 


166  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

glad  to  let  us  go,  fearing  that  we  could  worlc 
magic,  and  might  turn  it  on  them.  Most  of  the 
natives  are  deadly  afraid  of  magic,  the  evil  eye, 
witch  doctors,  and  stuff  like  that.  But  evidently 
we've  impressed  the  giants  in  the  wrong  way. 
If  we  could  only  speak  their  language  now,  we 
could  explain  that  unless  they  let  us  go  we  might 
destroy  their  village,  though  of  course  we 
wouldn't  do  anything  of  the  kind.  If  we  could 
only  speak  their  language  but  we  can't." 

"Do  you  suppose  they  understood  what  Delby 
said?"  asked  Ned. 

"Not  a  bit  of  it!  He  was  just  desperate  when 
he  yelled  out  that  way.  He  saw  that  we  had  an 
advantage  on  him — or  at  least  I  thought  we  did, 
but  I  guess  we  didn't,"  and  Tom  gazed  out  of 
the  windows  in  front  of  each  of  which  stood  twd 
of  the  largest  giants.  By  means  of  the  torches 
it  could  be  seen  that  the  circus  man  was  being 
taken  to  another  hut,  some  distance  away  from 
the  royal  one.  Then,  after  an  awed  silence,  there 
broke  out  a  confused  talking  and  shouting  among 
the  giant  population,  that  was  drawn  up  in  a 
circle  a  respectful  distance  from  the  hut  where! 
the  captives  were  confined.  Doubtless  they  were 
discussing  what  had  taken  place,  hoping  and  yet 
'fearing,  that  there  might  be  more  fireworks. 

"Well,  we  might  as  well  go  to  bed,"  declared 


WEAK  GIANTS  167 

Tom  at  length.  "We  can't  do  any  more  to-night, 
and  I'm  dead  tired.  In  the  morning  we  can  talk 
over  new  plans.  My  box  of  tricks  isn't  ex- 
hausted yet." 

'  In  spite  of  their  strange  captivity  our  friends 
slept  well,  and  they  did  not  awaken  once  during 
the  night,  for  they  had  worked  hard  that  day, 
and  were  almost  exhausted.  In  the  morning  they 
looked  out  and  saw  guards  still  about  the  hut 

"Now  for  a  good  breakfast,  and  another  try!" 
-exclaimed  Tom,  as  he  washed  in  a  big  earthen  jar 
of  water  that  had  been  provided.  Freshened  by 
the  cool  liquid,  they  were  made  hungry  for  the 
meal  which  was  brought  to  them  a  little  later. 
fThey  noticed  that  the  women  cooks  looked  at  them 
with  fear  in  their  eyes,  and  did  not  linger  as  they 
had  done  before.  Instead  they  set  down  the  trays 
of  food  and  hurried  away. 

"They're  getting  to  be  afraid  of  us,"  declared 
Tom.  "If  we  could  only  talk  their  language " 

"By  Jove!"  suddenly  interrupted  Ned.  "I've 
just  thought  of  something.  Jake  Poddington  you 
know — the  agent  for  Mr.  Preston  who  so  mys- 
teriously disappeared." 

"Well,  what  about  him?"  asked  Tom.  "Did 
you  see  him?" 

"No,  but  he  may  be  here — a  captive  like  our- 
selves. If  he  is  he's  been  here  long  enough  to 


168  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

have  learned  the  language  of  the  giants,  and  if 
he  could  translate  for  us,  we  wouldn't  have  any 
trouble.  Why  didn't  we  think  of  it  before?  If 
we  could  only  find  Mr.  Poddington!" 

"Yes,  */  we  only  could,"  put  in  Tom.  "But! 
it's  a  slim  chance.  I  declare  I've  forgotten  about 
him  in  the  last  few  days,  so  many  things  have 
happened.  But  what  makes  you  think  he  is  here, 
Ned?" 

"Why  he  started  for  giant  land,  you'll  remem- 
ber, and  he  may  have  reached  here.  Oh,  if  we 
could  only  find  him,  and  save  him  and  save  our- 
selves!" 

"It  would  be  great!"  admitted  Tom.  "But 
I'm  afraid  we  can't  do  it.  There's  a  chance, 
though,  that  Mr.  Poddington  may  be  here,  or  may 
have  been  here.  If  we  could  only  get  out  and 
make  some  explorations  or  some  inquiries.  It's 
tough  to  be  cooped  up  here  like  chickens." 

Tom  looked  from  the  window,  vainly  hoping 
that  the  guards  might  have  been  withdrawn.  The 
giants  were  still  before  the  windows  and  doors. 

For  a  week  this  captivity  was  kept  up,  and  in 
that  time  Tom  and  his  friends  had  occasional, 
glimpses  of  Hank  Delby  going  to  and  from  the 
king's  hut.  His  majesty  himself  was  not  seen, 
but  there  appeared  to  be  considerable  activity  in 
the  giant  village. 


WEAK  GIANTS  169 

From  their  prison-hut  the  captives  could  see 
the  native  market  held  in  the  big  open  space,  and 
giants  from  surrounding  towns  and  the  open 
country  came  in  to  trade.  There  were  also  curi- 
ous about  the  white  captives,  and  there  was  a 
constant  throng  around  the  big  hut,  peering  in. 
So  also  there  was  about  the  hut  where  the  circus 
man  had  his  headquarters.  Delby  seemed  to  be 
free  to  come  and  go  as  he  chocfse. 

"I  guess  he's  laying  his  plans  to  take  a  giant  or 
two  away  with  him,"  remarked  Tom  one  day. 
"I  wonder  what  will  become  of  us,  when  he  does 
go?" 

It  was  a  momentous  question,  and  no  one  could 
answer  it.  Tom  was  doing  some  hard  thinking 
those  days.  Two  weeks  passed  and  there  was  no 
change.  Our  friends  were  still  captives  in  giant 
land.  They  had  tried,  by  signs,  to  induce  their 
guards  to  take  some  message  to  the  king,  but  the 
giants  refused  with  shakes  of  their  big  heads. 

Yet  the  adventurers  could  not  complain  of 
bad  treatment  They  were  well  fed,  and  the 
guards  seemed  good  natured,  laughing  among 
themselves,  and  smiling  whenever  they  saw  any 
of  the  captives.  But  let  Tom,  or  some  of  the 
others,  step  across  the  threshold  of  the  door,  and 
they  were  kindly,  but  firmly,  shoved  back. 

"It's  of  no  use  I"  exclaimed  Tom  in  despair 


170  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

one  day,  after  a  bold  attempt  to  walk  out 
"We've  got  to  do  something.  If  we  can't  get 
word  to  the  king  we've  got  to  plan  some  way  to 
gain  the  friendship,  or  work  on  the  fear  of  the* 
guards.  We  have  about  the  same  crowd  every 
time.  If  we  can  scare  them  they  may  keep  far 
enough  off  so  we  can  have  a  chance  to  escape." 

"Escape !  That's  the  thing !"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
"Why  can't  we  put  the  airship  together  in  this 
hut,  Tom,  and  fly  away  in  it?" 

"We  can,  when  the  right  time  comes — if  it  ever 
does — but  first  we've  got  to  work  on  the  guards. 
Let  me  see  what  I  can  do?  Ha!  I  have  it. 
Ned,  come  here,  I  want  your  help.  I'm  going  to 
-show  these  giants  that,  with  all  their  strength,  I 
can  make  each  of  them  as  weak  as  a  baby,  and, 
at  the  same  time  prove  that  they  can't  lift  even  a 
light  weight." 

"How  you  going  to  do  it?"  asked  Mr.  Damon. 

"I'll  soon  show  you.    Come  on,  Ned." 

Tom  and  his  chum  were  busy  for  several  days 
among  the  various  boxes  and  bales  that  formed 
the  baggage.  They  rigged  up  two  pieces  of  ap- 
paratus which  I  will  describe  in  due  time.  They 
also  opened  several  boxes  of  trinkets  and  trading 
goods,  which  had  been  brought  along  for  barter. 
These  they  distributed  among  the  guards,  and, 
though  the  giants  were  immensely  pleased,  they 


WEAK  GIANTS  1^1 

did  not  get  friendly  enough  to  walk  off  and  leave 
our  friends  free  to  do  as  they  pleased. 

"Well,  I  guess  we're  ready  for  the  lesson 
now,"  remarked  Tom  one  afternoon,  when  they 
had  been  held  captives  for  about  three  weeks. 
"If  they  won't  respond  to  gentle  treatment  we'll 
try  some  other  kind  of  persuasion." 

The  guards  had  become  so  friendly  of  late  that 
some  of  them  often  spent  part  of  the  day  inside 
the  hut,  looking  at  the  curious  things  Tom  and 
his  party  had  brought  with  them.  This  was  just 
what  the  young  inventor  wanted,  as  he  was  now 
ready  to  give  them  a  second  lesson  in  white  man's 
magic. 

Tom  and  Ned  had  learned  a  few  words  of  the 
giant's  language,  which  was  quite  simple,  though 
it  sounded  hard,  and  one  day,  after  he  had  shown 
them  simple  toys,  the  young  inventor  brought 
forth  a  simple-looking  box,  with  two  shining 
handles. 

"Here  is  a  little  thing,"  explained  Tom,  partly 
by  words,  and  partly  by  using  signs,  "a  simple 
(little  thing  which,  if  one  of  you  will  but  take 
hold  of,  you  cannot  let  go  of  again  until  I  move 
my  finger.  Do  you  believe  that  a  small  white 
man  like  myself  can  make  this  little  thing  stronger 
than  a  giant?"  he  asked 


172  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY. 

One  of  the  biggest  of  the  guards  shoot  his 
head. 

"Try,"  invited  Tom.  "Take  hold  of  the 
handles.  At  first  you  will  be  able  to  let  go  easily. 
But,  when  I  shall  move  my  finger  though  but 
a  little,  you  will  be  held  fast.  Then,  another 
movement,  and  you  will  be  loose  again.  Can  I 
do  it?" 

Once  more  the  giant  shook  his  head. 

'Try,"  urged  Tom,  and  he  put  the  two  shining 
handles  into  the  big  palms  of  the  giant.  The  na- 
tive grinned  and  some  of  his  companions  laughed, 
Then  to  show  how  easy  it  was  he  let  go.  He 
took  hold  again. 

"Now !"  cried  Tom,  and  he  moved  his  finger. 

Instantly  the  giant  leaped  up  into  the  air.  He 
uttered  a  howl  that  seemed  to  shake  the  very 
roof  of  the  hut,  and  his  arms  were  as  rigid  as 
poles.  They  were  drawn  up  in  knots,  and  though 
he  tried  with  all  his  great  might,  he  could  not 
loose  his  fingers  from  the  shiny  handles.  He 
howled  in  terror,  and  his  companions  murmured 
in  amazement 

"It  is  as  I  told  you!"  exclaimed  Tom.  "Is  it 
enough?" 

"Loose  me!  Loose  me!  Loose  me  from  the 
terrible  rnagic !"  cried  the  giant,  and,  with  a  move- 
ment of  his  finger,  Tom  switched  off  the  current 


WEAK  GIANTS  173 

from  the  electric  battery.  Instantly  the  giant's 
arms  dropped  to  his  side,  his  hands  relaxed  and 
the  handles  dropped  clattering  to  the  floor. 

With  a  look  of  fear,  and  a  howl  of  anguish, 
the  big  guard  fled,  but  to  the  surprise  and  grati- 
fication of  Tom  and  his  friends  the  others  seemed 
only  amused,  and  they  nodded  in  a  friendly 
fashion  to  the  captives.  They  all  pressed  for- 
ward to  try  the  battery. 

One  and  all  endeavored  to  loose  their  hands 
after  Tom,  by  a  movement  of  his  forefinger,  had 
turned  the  switch  of  the  battery,  and  one  and  all 
of  the  giant  guards  were  unable  to  stir,  as  the 
electricity  gripped  their  muscles.  They  were  evi- 
dently awed. 

"This  is  working  better  than  the  fireworks 
did,"  murmured  Tom.  "Now  if  I  can  only  keep 
tip  the  good  work,  and  get  ahead  of  Delby  I'll 
be  all  right.  Now  for  the  other  test,  Ned." 

Ned  brought  from  a  box  what  looked  to  be  a 
small  iron  bar,  with  a  large  handle  on  the  top. 
The  bottom  was  ground  very  smooth. 

"This  is  very  small  and  light,"  explained  Tom, 
partly  by  signs,  and  partly  by  words.  "I  can 
easily  lift  it  by  one  finger,  and  to  a  giant  it  is 
but  a  feather's  weight." 

He  let  the  giants  handle  it,  and  of  course  they 
Could  fell  scarcely  any  weight  at  all,  for  it  tipped 


174  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

the  scales  at  only  a  pound.  But  is  was  shortly; 
(to  be  much  heavier. 

"See,"  went  on  the  young  inventor.  "I  place 
the  weight  on  the  floor,  and  lift  it  easily.  Can 
you  do  it?" 

The  giants  laughed  at  such  a  simple  triclc. 
Tom  set  the  iron  bar  down  and  raised  it  several 
times.  So  did  several  of  the  giants. 

"Now  for  the  test!"  cried  Tom  with  a  dra- 
matic gesture.  "I  shall  put  my  magic  upon  you, 
and  you  shall  all  become  as  weak  as  babies.  You 
cannot  lift  the  bar  of  iron!" 

As  he  spoke  he  made  a  signal  to  Ned,  who 
stood  in  a  distant  corner  of  the  room.  Then  Tom 
carefully  placed  the  weight  on  a  sheet  of  white 
paper  on  a  certain  spot  on  the  floor  of  the  hut 
and  motioned  to  the  largest  giant  to  pick  up  the 
iron  bar. 

With  a  laugh  of  contempt  and  confidence,  the 
big  man  stooped  over  and  grasped  the  handle. 
But  he  did  not  arise.  Instead,  the  muscles  of  his 
naked  arm  swelled  out  in  great  bunches. 

"See,  you  are  as  a  little  babe!"  taunted  Tom. 
"Another  may  try!" 

Another  did,  and  another  and  another,  until  it 
came  the  turn  of  the  mightiest  giant  of  all  the 
guard  that  day.  With  a  sudden  wrench  he  sought 
to  lift  the  bar.  He  tugged  and  strained.  He  bent 


WEAK  GIANTS  175 ' 

fiis  back  and  his  legs;  his  shoulders  heaved  with 
the  terrific  effort  he  made — but  the  bar  still  held 
to  the  floor  of  the  hut  as  though  a  part  of  the 
big  beams  themselves. 

"Now!"  cried  Tom,  "I  shall  show  you  how  a 
white  man's  magic  makes  him  stronger  than  the 
biggest  giant." 

Once  more  he  made  a  hidden  sign  to  Ned,  and 
then,  stooping  over,  Tom  crooked  his  little  ringer 
in  the  handle  of  the  iron  bar  and  lifted  it  as  easily 
as  if  it  was  a  feather. 


CHAPTER  XX 

THE    LONE    CAPTIVE 

THE  murmurs  of  astonishment  that  greeted 
Tom's  seemingly  marvelous  feat  of  strength  was 
even  greater  than  that  which  had  marked  his 
trick  with  the  electric  battery.  The  giants  stared 
at  him  as  though  they  feared  the  next  moment 
he  might  suddenly  turn  upon  them  and  hurl  them 
about  like  ten-pins. 

"You  see,  it  is  easy  when  one  knows  the  white 
man's  magic,"  spoke  Tom,  making  many  gestures 
to  help  along.  "Go  tell  your  king  that  it  is  not 
well  that  he  keeps  us  prisoners  here,  for  if  he 
does  not  soon  let  us  go  the  magic  may  break  loose 
and  destroy  his  palace!" 

There  was  a  gasp  of  dismay  from  the  giants 
at  this  bold  talk. 

"Better  go  easy,  Tom,"  counseled  Ned. 

"I'm  tired  of  going  easy,"  replied  the  young 
inventor.  "Something  has  got  to  happen  pretty 
soon,  or  it  will  be  all  up  with  us.  I'm  getting 
weary  of  being  cooped  up  here.  Not  that  the 

176 


THE  LONE  CAPTIVE  177 

king  doesn't  treat  us  well,  but  I  don't  want  to 
be  a  prisoner.  I  want  to  get  out  and  see  if  we 
can't  arrange  to  take  a  couple  of  these  giants 
back  for  Mr.  Preston.  That  Delby  sneak  has 
things  all  his  own  way. " 

And  this  was  so,  for  the  circus  man  had  poi- 
soned the  king's  mind  against  Tom  and  his 
friends,  representing  (as  our  hero  learned  later) 
that  the  first  arrivals  in  giant  land  were  danger- 
ous people,  and  not  to  be  trusted.  On  his  own 
part,  Hank  Delby  intimated  that  he  would  al- 
ways be  a  friend  to  the  king,  would  teach  him 
many  of  the  white  man's  secrets,  and  would  make 
him  powerful.  Thus  the  circus  man  was  making 
plans  for  his  own  ends,  and  he  was  scheming  to 
get  a  couple  of  giants  for  himself,  who  he  in- 
tended to  hurry  away,  leaving  Tom  and  his 
friends  to  escap^  as  best  they  could. 

And  Delby  had  brought  with  him  some  novel- 
ties in  the  way  of  toys  and  machinery  that  seemed 
greatly  to  take  the  fancy  of  the  king.  Tom  real- 
ized this  when  he  saw  his  rival  free  to  come  and 
go,  and  one  reason  why  our  hero  did  the  experi- 
ments just  related  was  so  that  the  king  might 
hear  of  them,  and  wonder. 

"Go  tell  the  king  that,  strong  as  he  is,  I  am 
stronger,"  went  on  Tom  boldly  to  tne  giant 
guards.  "I  am  not  afraid  of  him." 


178  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Bless  my  war  club,  Tom,  aren't  you  a  little 
rash  to  talk  that  way?"  asked  Mr.  Damon. 

"No.  As  I  said,  I  want  things  to  happen.  If  I 
can  only  get  the  king  curious  enough  to  come 
here  I  can  show  him  things  to  open  his  eyes. 
I'll  work  the  miniature  circus,  and  explain  that 
some  of  his  subjects  can  take  part  in  a  real  one 
if  they  will  come  with  us.  I  want  to  beat  this 
Delby  at  his  own  game." 

"That's  the  stuff!"  cried  Ned.  "Stick  to  it, 
Torn.  I'll  help  you,  and  we'll  get  a  giant  or  two 
yet.  And  maybe  we  can  get  some  news  of  poor 
Jake  Poddington." 

"I  intend  to  make  inquiries  about  him,  now 
that  these  guards  are  a  little  more  friendly/'  said 
Tom.  "It  may  be  that  he  is  a  prisoner  fcn  this 
very  village." 

The  giant  guards,  now  that  they  had  gotten 
over  their  fright  at  their  own  inability  to  raise 
the  bar  while  Tom  had  lifted  it  with  one  finger, 
again  crowded  around,  asking  that  the  trick  be 
repeated.  Tom  did  it,  with  the  same  result. 

None  of  the  giants  could  move  the  iron,  yet 
Tom  had  no  difficulty  in  doing  so.  Of  course  my 
readers  have  already  guessed  how  the  trick  was 
'done.  It  was  worked  by  a  strong  magnet,  hidden 
in  the  floor.  At  a  signal  from  Tom,  Ned  would 
switch  on  the  current.  The  iron  would  be  held 


THE  LONE  CAPTIVE  179 

fast  and  immovable,  but  when  Tom  himself  went 
to  raise  it  Ned  would  cut  off  the  electricity  and 
the  bar  was  lifted  as  easily  as  an  ordinary  piece 
of  iron.  But  simple  as  the  trick  was,  it  impressed 
the  giants.  Then  Tom  did  some  other  stunts  for 
them,  simple  experiments  in  physics,  that  every 
High  School  lad  has  done  in  class. 

"I  want  to  get  these  guards  friendly  with  me/' 
he  explained.  "In  time  the  news  will  reach  the 
king  and  he'll  be  so  curious  that  he'll  come  here 
and  then — well,  we'll  see  what  will  happen." 

But  this  did  not  take  place  as  soon  as  Tom 
desired.  In  fact,  the  giants  were  very  slow  to 
act.  The  guards  did  get  quite  friendly,  and  every 
day  they  wanted  the  same  two  first  tricks  per- 
formed over  again.  Tom  did  them  many  times, 
wondering  when  the  king  would  come. 

Then  he  played  a  bold  game,  and  made  open 
inquiries  about  a  white  man,  one  like  the  king's 
captives,  who  might  have  come  to  giant  land 
about  a  year  previous. 

"Is  there  a  lone  white  captive  here?"  asked 
Tom. 

The  giant  guard  to  whom  he  directed  his  ques- 
tion gave  a  start,  for  Tom  could  now  speak  the 
language  fairly  well,  and,  after  the  first  indica- 
tion of  surprise,  the  guard  muttered  something 
to  his  companions.  There  was  a  startled  ejacu- 


TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

lation,  a  curious  glance  at  the  captives,  and  then 
• — silence.  The  guards  filed  silently  away,  and, 
a  little  later,  could  be  seen  going  in  the  king's 
big  hut. 

"By  Jove,  Tom!"  cried  Ned.  "You  touched 
'em  that  time.  There's  something  up,  as  sure 
as  you're  born!" 

"I  believe  so  myself,"  agreed  the  young  in- 
ventor. "And  now  to  throw  a  real  scare  into 
these  giants,"  he  added,  as  he  went  to  a  distant 
room  of  the  hut  where  he  had  hidden  some  of 
the  things  he  had  taken  from  his  "box  of  tricks," 
as  Ned  dubbed  it. 

"Bless  my  necktie!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 
"What's  up  now,  Tom." 

"I'm  going  to  show  these  giants  that  they'd 
better  make  friends  with  us  soon,  or  we  may 
blow  their  whole  town  sky-high!"  cried  Tom. 
"I'm  going  to  use  some  of  the  blasting  powder — < 
just  a  pinch,  so  to  speak — and  knock  an  empty 
hut  into  slivers.  I  think  that  will  impress  these 
fellows.  If  I  can  only " 

"Look,  Tom!  suddenly  cried  Ned.  "The  king's 
two  brothers  are  coming  here.  Something's  up. 
He's  sent  some  of  the  family  to  interview  us. 
Get  ready  to  receive  them." 

"Couldn't  be  better!"  cried  the  young  inventor. 


THE  LONE  CAPTIVE  l8l 

"I've  been  waiting  for  this.  Now  I'll  give  then* 
a  surprise  party." 

The  two  big  brothers  of  the  king,  for  such 
Tom  and  his  friends  had  recently  learned  was 
the  relationship  the  giants  on  either  side  of  the 
"throne"  bore  to  the  ruler,  were  indeed  headed 
toward  the  hut  of  the  captives.  They  came  alone, 
in  their  royal  garments  of  jaguar  skins,  and, 
standing  about  the  palace  hut,  could  be  seen  the 
giant  guards  who  had  doubtless  carried  the  news 
of  the  question  Tom  had  asked. 

"Come  on,  Ned,  we've  got  to  get  busy!"  ex- 
claimed Tom.  "Connect  the  electric  battery,  and 
get  that  magnet  in  shape.  I'm  going  to  make  a 
fuse  for  this  blasting  powder  bomb,  and  if  I 
can  get  those  royal  brothers  to  plant  it  for  me, 
there'll  be  some  high  jinks  soon." 

Tom  busied  himself  in  making  an  improvised 
bomb,  while  Ned  attended  to  the  electrical  at- 
tachments, and  Mr.  Damon  and  Eradicate  acted 
as  general  assistants. 

The  two  giant  brothers  entered  the  hut  and 
greeted  Tom  and  the  others  calmly.  Then  they 
explained  that  the  king  had  sent  them  to  investi- 
gate certain  stories  told  by  the  guard. 

"I'll  show  you!"  exclaimed  Tom,  and  he  in- 
duced them  to  take  hold  of  the  handles  of  the 
battery.  The  current  was  turned  on  full  strength, 


I8t2  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

and  from  the  manner  in  which  the  royal  brothers 
writhed  and  howled  Tom  judged  that  the  experi- 
ment was  a  success. 

"With  all  your  strength  you  can  not  let  go 
until  I  move  my  finger,"  the  young  inventor  ex- 
plained, and  it  was  so.  Even  the  skeptical  giants 
agreed  on  that. 

"Now  I  shall  show  you  that  I  am  stronger  than 
you!"  exclaimed  Tom,  and  though  the  giants 
smiled  increduously  so  it  was,  for  the  magnet 
trick  worked  as  well  as  before.  There  were  mur- 
murs of  surprise  from  the  two  immense  brothers, 
and  they  talked  rapidly  together. 

"I  will  now  show  you  that  I  can  call  the  light- 
ning from  the  sky  to  do  my  bidding,"  went  on 
Tom.  "Is  that  possible  to  any  of  you  giants?" 

"Never!  Never!  No  man  can  do  it!"  cried 
Tola  and  Koku  together. 

"Then  watch  me!"  invited  Tom.  "Is  there  an' 
empty  hut  near  here?"  he  asked.  "One  that  it 
will  do  no  harm  to  destroy?" 

Tola  pointed  to  one  visible  from  the  window 
of  the  prison  of  our  friends. 

"Then  take  this  little  ball,  with  the  string  at- 
tached to  it,  and  place  it  in  the  hut,"  went  on 
Tom.  "Then  flee  for  your  lives,  for  standing 
from  here,  I  shall  call  the  lightning  down,  and 
you  shall  see  the  hut  destroyed" 


THE  LONE  CAPTIVE  183 

"Why  don't  you  ask  them  something  about 
Jake  Poddington?"  asked  Ned. 

"Time  enough  for  that  after  I've  shown  them 
what  a  little  powder  will  do,  when  I  attach  elec- 
tric wires  to  it  and  press  a  button,"  replied  Tom. 
"I've  got  that  bomb  fixed  so  it  will  go  off  by 
an  electric  fuse.  If  they'll  only  put  it  in  thd 
hut  for  me.  I'd  do  it  myself,  only  they  won't 
let  me  go  out." 

The  brothers  conferred  for  a  moment  and  then, 
seeming  to  arrive  at  a  decision,  Koku,  who  was 
slightly  the  larger,  took  the  bomb,  looked  curi- 
ously at  it,  and  walked  with  it  towai^d  the  empty 
hut,  the  electric  wire  being  reeled  out  behind  him 
by  Tom. 

The  bomb  was  left  inside  the  frail  structure, 
the  two  brothers  hurried  away,  and,  standing  at 
a  safe  distance  from  the  hut  of  the  captives,  as 
well  as  the  one  that  Tom  had  promised  to  destroy 
by  lightning,  they  waved  their  hands  to  show 
that  they  were  ready. 

"Bless  my  admission  ticket!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Damon.  "You've  got  quite  an  audience,  Tom." 

And  so  he  had,  for  there  was  a  crowd  in  the 
market  square,  another  throng  about  the  king's 
palace,  while  all  about,  hidden  behind  trees  or 
huts,  was  nearly  the  whole  population  of  the 
giant  town. 


184  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"That's  what  I  want,"  said  the  young  inventor. 
"It  will  be  all  the  more  impressive." 

"And  there's  the  king  himself!"  exclaimed 
Ned.  "He's  standing  in  the  door  of  his  royal 
hut." 

"Better  yet!"  cried  Tom.  "Are  those  wires 
all  connected,  Ned?" 

"Yes,"  answered  his  chum,  after  a  quick  in- 
spection. 

"Then  here  she  goes !"  cried  Tom,  as  he  pressed 
the  button. 

Instantly  the  hut,  in  which  the  bomb  had  been 
placed,  arose  in  the  air.  The  roof  was  lifted  off, 
the  sides  spread  out  and  there  was  a  great  flash 
of  fire  and  a  puff  of  smoke. 

Then  as  the  smoke  cleared  away  Ned  cried 
Out: 

"Look,  Tom  Look!  You've  blown  a  hole  in 
the  hut  next  to  the  one  you  destroyed!" 

Yes,  and  bless  my  check  book!"  exclaimed  Mr. 
Damon,  "some  one  is  running  out  of  it.  A  white 
man,  Tom !  A  white  man ! " 

"It's  Poddington!  Poor  Jake  Poddington. 
We've  found  him  at  last!  This  way,  Mr.  Pod- 
dington! This  way!  Mr.  Preston  sent  us  to 
rescue  yoid"  cried  Tom. 


CHAPTER   XXI 

A  ROYAL  CONSPIRACY 

HOWLS  of  terror,  cries  of  anger,  and  a  rushing 
to  and  fro  on  the  part  of  the  giants,  followed 
the  latest  trick  of  Tom  Swift  to  impress  them 
with  his  power.  But  to  all  this  the  young  in- 
ventor and  his  friends  paid  no  attention.  Their 
eyes  were  fixed  on  the  ragged  figure  of  the  white 
man  who  was  rushing  toward  their  hut  as  fast 
as  his  legs,  manacled  as  they  were,  would  let 
him. 

"Come  on!    Come  on!"  cried  Tom. 

"Look  out!"  yelled  Ned.  "Some  of  the  giants 
are  after  him,  Tom!" 

Several  of  the  big  men,  after  their  first  fright, 
had  recovered  sufficiently  to  pursue  the  captive 
so.  strangely  released  by  the  explosion. 

"Hand  me  an  electric  rifle,  Ned!"  cried  Tom. 

"Bless  my  shoe  laces!"  cried  Mr.  Damon, 
"You're  not  going  to  kill  any  of  the  giants;  are 
you,  Tom?" 

"Well,  I'm  not  going  to  let  them  capture  Jake 
Poddington  again,"  was  the  quick  answer,  "but 

185 


186  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

I  guess  if  I  stun  a  few  of  them  with  the  electric 
bullets  that  will  answer." 

Poddington  (for  later  the  white  captive  did 
prove  to  be  the  missing  circus  man)  ran  on,  and 
close  behind  him  came  two  of  the  giants,  taking 
long  strides.  Tom  aimed  his  electric  rifle  at  the 
foremost  and  pulled  the  trigger.  There  was  no 
sound,  but  the  big  man  crumpled  up  and  fell,  roll- 
ing over  and  over.  With  a  yell  of  rage  his  com- 
panion pressed  on,  but  a  moment  later,  he,  too, 
went  down,  and  then  the  others,  who  had  started 
in  pursuit  of  their  recent  captive,  turned  back. 

"I  thought  that  would  fix  'em,"  murmured 
Tom  gleefully. 

In  another  five  seconds  Poddington  was  inside 
the  hut,  gasping  from  his  run.  He  was  very  thin 
and  pale,  and  the  sudden  exertion  had  been  toa 
much  for  him. 

"Water — water!"  he  gasped,  and  Mr.  Damon 
gave  him  some.  He  sank  on  one  of  the  skin- 
covered  benches,  and  his  half -exhausted  breath' 
slowly  came  back  to  him. 

"Boys,"  he  gasped,  "I  don't  know  who  you  are, 
but  thank  heaven  you  came  just  in  time.  I 
couldn't  have  stood  it  much  longer.  I  heard  you 
yell  something  about  Preston.  Is  it  possible  he 
sent  you  to  find  me?" 

"Partly  that  and  partly  to  get  a  giant,"  ex* 


A  ROYAL  CONSPIRACY  ig^ 

gained  Tom.  "We  didn't  know  you  were  in  that 
hut,  or  we'd  never  have  blown  up  the  one  next  td 
It,  though  we  suspected  you  might  be  held  cap- 
tive somewhere  around  here,  from  the  queer  way 
the  giants  acted  when  we  asked  about  you." 

"And  so  you  blew  up  that  hut?"  remarked  the 
circus  agent.  "I  thought  it  was  struck  by  lightning. 
But  it  did  me  a  good  turn.  I  was  chained  to  the 
Wall  of  the  hut  next  door,  and  your  explosion 
split  the  beam  to  which  my  chains  were  fastened. 
I  didn't  lose  any  time  running  out,  I  can  tell  you. 
Oh,  but  it's  good  to  be  free  once  more  and  to 
see  someone  my  own  size!" 

"How  did  you  get  here,  and  why  did  they 
Keep  you  a  prisoner?"  asked  Tom.  Then  Pod- 
tlington  told  his  story,  while  Ned  and  Mr.  Damon 
aided  Tom  in  filing  off  the  rude  iron  shackles 
from  his  wrists  and  ankles. 

As  Mr.  Preston  had  heard,  Jake  Poddington 
Had  started  for  giant  land.  But  he  lost  his  way, 
his  escort  of  natives  deserted  him,  just  as  Tom's 
'did,  and  he  wandered  on  in  the  jungle,  nearly 
'dying.  Then,  merely  by  accident,  he  came  upon 
giant  land,  but  he  had  the  misfortune  to  incur  the 
anger  of  the  big  men  who  took  him  for  an  ene- 
my. They  at  once  made  him  a  prisoner,  and  had 
Kept  him  so  ever  since,  though  they  did  not  harm 
tiim  otherwise,  and  gave  him  good  food 


188  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"I  think  they  were  a  bit  afraid  of  me  in  spite 
of  my  small  size,"  explained  the  circus  man.  "I 
never  thought  to  be  rescued,  for,  though  I  figured 
that  Mr.  Preston  might  hear  of  my  plight,  he 
could  never  find  this  place.  How  did  you  get 
here?" 

Then  Tom  told  his  story,  and  of  how  thej 
themselves  were  held  captives  because  of  the 
treachery  of  Hank  Delby. 

"That's  just  like  him!"  cried  Poddington.  "Ht 
was  always  mean,  and  always  trying  to  get  the 
advantage  of  his  rivals.  But  I'm  glad  I'm  with 
you.  With  what  stuff  you  have  here  it  oughtn't 
to  be  difficult  to  get  away  from  giant  land." 

"But  I  want  a  giant,"  insisted  Tom.  "I  told 
Mr.  Preston  I'd  bring  him  back  one,  and  I'm 
going  to  do  it." 

"You  can't!"  cried  the  circus  man.  "They 
won't  come  with  you,  and  it's  almost  impossible  ta 
make  a  prisoner  of  one.  You'd  better  escape.  I 
want  to  get  away  from  giant  land.  I've  had 
enough." 

"We'll  get  away,"  said  Tom  confidently,  "and 
we'll  have  a  giant  or  two  when  we  go." 

"You'll  have  some  before  you  go  I  guess !"  sud- 
denly interrupted  Ned.  "There's  a  whole  crowd 
of  'em  headed  this  way,  and  they've  got  clubs, 


A  ROYAL  CONSPIRACY  189 

bows  and  arrows  and  those  blow  guns!    I  guess 
they're  going  to  besiege  us." 

"All  right !"  cried  Tom.  "If  they  want  to  fight 
we  can  give  'em  as  good  as  they  send.  Ned,  you 
and  Mr.  Damon  and  I  will  handle  the  electric 
rifles.  Eradicate,  use  your  shotgun,  and  fire  high. 
We  don't  want  to  hurt  any  of  the  big  men.  We'll 
merely  stun  them  with  the  electric  bullets,  but  the 
noise  of  Rad's  gun  will  help  some." 

"What  can  I  do?"  asked  Mr.  Poddington. 

"You're  too  weak  to  do  much,"  replied  Tom. 
"You  just  keep  on  the  lookout,  and  tell  us  if  they 
try  any  surprises.  I  guess  we  can  handle  'em  all 
right." 

With  shouts  and  yells  the  big  men  came  on. 
Evidently  their  indifference  toward  their  cap- 
tives had  turned  to  anger  because  of  the  freeing 
of  Poddington,  and  now  they  were  determined  to 
use  harsh  measures.  They  advanced  with  wild 
yells,  brandishing  their  clubs  and  other  weapons, 
while  the  weird  sound  of  the  tom-toms  and  na- 
tives drums  added  to  the  din. 

When  a  short  distance  from  the  hut  the  giants 
stopped,  and  began  firing  arrows  and  darts  from 
the  blow  guns. 

"Look  out  for  those!"  warned  Tom.  "They 
probably  are  poisoned,  and  a  scratch  may  mean 
death.  Give  'em  a  few  shots  now,  Ned  and  Mr. 


TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

Damon !    Rad,  give  'em  a  salute,  but  fire  high !" 

"Dat's  what  I  will,  Massa  Tom!" 

The  gun  of  the  colored  man  barked  out  a  noisy 
welcome,  and,  at  the  same  time  three  giants  fell, 
stunned  by  the  electric  bullets,  for  the  rifles  were 
adjusted  to  send  out  only  mild  charges. 

Thrice  they  charged,  and  each  time  they  were 
driven  back,  and  then,  finding  that  the  captives 
were  ever  ready  for  them,  they  gave  up  the  at- 
tempt to  overwhelm  them,  and  hurried  away, 
many  going  into  the  king's  hut.  His  royal  majes- 
ty did  not  show  himself  during  the  fight. 

"Well,  I  guess  they  won't  try  that  right  away 
again,"  remarked  Tom,  as  he  saw  the  stunned 
giants  slowly  arouse  themselves  and  crawl  away. 
"We've  taught  them  a  lesson." 

They  felt  better  after  that,  and  then,  when 
they  had  eaten  and  drank,  they  began  to  consider 
ways  and  means  of  escape.  But  Tom  would  not 
hear  of  going  until  he  could  get  at  least  one  giant 
for  the  circus. 

"But  you  can't!"  insisted  Mr.  Poddington. 

"Well,  it's  too  soon  to  give  up  yet,"  declared 
Tom.  "I'd  like  to  take  the  king's  two  brothers 
with  me." 

"By  Jove!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Poddington,  "I 
never  thought  of  that.  There  is  just  a  bare 
diance.  Did  you  know  that  the  two  brothers,  who 


A  ROYAL  CONSPIRACY 

are  twins,  dislike  the  king,  for  he  is  younger  than 
they,  and  he  practically  took  the  throne  away 
from  them.  They  should  rule  jointly  by  rights. 
If  we  could  enlist  Tola  and  Koku  on  our  side  we 
might  win  out  yet." 

"Then  we'll  try!"  exclaimed  Tom. 

Jake  Poddington,  who  had  been  a  captive  in 
the  giant  city  long  enough  to  know  something  of 
its  history,  and  had  learned  to  talk  the  language, 
explained  how  Kosk  had  ursurped  the  throne. 
His  brothers  were  subject  to  him,  he  said,  but 
several  times  they  had  tried  in  vain  to  start  a 
revolution.  To  punish  them  for  their  rebellious 
efforts  the  king  made  them  his  personal  servants, 
and  this  explained  why  he  sent  them  to  see  the 
tricks  Tom  performed. 

"If  we  could  only  get  into  communication  with 
the  big  twins,"  went  on  the  circus  man,  "we  could 
offer  to  take  them  with  us  to  a  country  where 
they  would  be  bigger  kings  than  their  brother  is 
here.  It's  a  royal  conspiracy  worth  trying." 

"Then  we'll  try  it!"  cried  Tom  enthusiastically. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

THE  TWIN  GIANTS 

DARING  indeed  was  the  scheme  decided  on  by 
the  captives,  and  yet  its  very  boldness  might  make 
it  possible  for  them  to  carry  it  out.  The  king 
would  never  suspect  them  of  plotting  to  carry  off 
his  two  royal  brothers,  and  this  made  it  all  the 
easier  to  lay  their  plans.  In  this  they  were  much 
helped  by  Poddington,  who  knew  the  language 
and  who  had  made  a  few  friends  among  the  more 
humble  people  of  the  village,  though  none  dared 
assist  him  openly. 

"The  first  thing  to  do,"  said  the  circus  man, 
"is  to  get  into  communication  with  the  twins." 

That  proved  harder  than  they  expected,  for  a 
week  passed,  and  they  did  not  have  a  glimpse  of 
Tola  and  Koku.  Meanwhile  the  giant  guard  was 
still  maintained  about  the  hut  night  and  day  No 
more  food  was  given  the  prisoners,  and  they 
would  have  starved  had  not  Tom  possessed  a 
good  supply  of  his  own  provisions.  It  was  evi- 
dently the  intention  of  the  king  to  starve  his 
'Captives  into  submission. 

102 


THE  TWIN  GIANTS  193 

"Suppose  you  do  get  those  big  brothers  to  ac- 
company you,  Tom?"  asked  Ned  one  day.  "How 
are  you  going  to  manage  to  get  away,  and  take 
them  with  you?" 

"My  aeroplane  I"  answered  Tom  quickly.  "I've 
got  it  all  planned  out.  You  and  I  with  Mr. 
Damon,  Mr.  Poddington  and  Eradicate  will  skip 
away  in  the  aeroplane.  We  can  put  it  together 
in  here,  and  I've  got  enough  gasolene  to  run  it 
a  couple  of  hundred  miles  if  necessary." 

"But  the  giants — you  can't  carry  them  in  it." 

"No,  and  I'm  not  going  to  try.  If  they'll 
agree  to  go  they  can  set  off  through  the  woods 
afoot.  We'll  meet  them  in  a  certain  place — where 
there's  a  good  land  mark  which  we  can  easily 
distinguish  from  the  aeroplane.  We'll  take  what 
stuff  we  can  with  us,  and  leave  the  rest  here. 
Oh,  it  can  be  done,  Ned." 

"But  when  you  start  out  with  the  aeroplane 
they'll  make  a  rush  and  overwhelm  us." 

"No,  for  I'll  do  it  so  quickly  that  they  won't 
have  a  chance.  I'm  going  to  saw  through  the 
beams  of  one  side  of  this  hut.  To  the  rear  there 
is  level  ground  that  will  make  a  fine  starting 
place.  When  everything  is  ready,  say  some  night, 
we'll  pull  the  side  wall  down,  start  the  aeroplane 
out  as  it  falls,  and  sail  away.  Then  we'll  pick 


194  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

up  the  giant  brothers  out  in  the  woods,  and  travel 
to  civilization  again." 

"By  Jove!  I  believe  that  will  work!"  cried  the 
circus  man. 

"Bless  my  corn  plaster,  I  think  so  myself!" 
added  Mr.  Damon. 

"But  first  we've  got  to  get  the  brothers  to 
agree,"  went  on  Tom,  "and  that  is  going  to  be 
hard  work." 

It  was  not  so  difficult  as  it  was  tedious. 
Through  an  aged  woman,  with  whom  he  had 
made  friends  when  a  captive,  Jake  Poddington 
managed  to  get  word  to  the  royal  twins  that  he 
and  the  other  captives  would  like  to  see  them 
privately.  Then  they  had  to  wait  for  an  answer. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  giants  tried  several  times 
to  surprise  Tom  and  his  friends  by  attacks,  but 
the  captives  were  on  the  alert,  and  the  electric 
rifles  drove  them  back. 

One  night  nearly  all  the  guards  were  observed 
to  be  absent.  There  were  not  more  than  half  a 
dozen  scattered  about  the  hut. 

"I  wonder  what  that  means?"  asked  Tom,  who 
Was  puzzled. 

"I  know!"  exclaimed  Jake  Poddington  after 
a  moment's  thought.  "It's  their  big  annual  feast. 
Even  the  king  goes  to  it.  They  were  just  getting 
©yer  it  when  I  struck  here  last  year,  and  maybe 


THE  TWIN  GIANTS 


195 


that's  what  set  them  so  against  me.  Boys,  this 
may  be  our  chance!" 

"How?"  asked  Ned. 

"The  king's  brothers  may  find  an  opportunity 
to  come  and  talk  to  us  when  the  feast  is  at  its 
height,"  was  the  reply. 

Anxiously  they  waited,  and  in  order  that  the 
royal  brothers  might  come  in  unobserved,  if  they 
did  conclude  to  speak  to  the  captives,  Tom  and 
his  companious  hung  some  pieces  of  canvas  over 
the  windows  and  doors,  and  had  only  a  single 
light  burning. 

It  was  at  midnight  that  a  cautious  knock  sound- 
ed at  the  side  of  the  hut  and  Tom  glided  to  the 
main  door.  In  the  shadows  he  saw  the  two  royal 
brothers,  Tola  and  Koku. 

"Here  they  are!"  whispered  Tom  to  Jake  Pod- 
dington,  who  came  forward. 

"Come!"  invited  the  circus  man  in  the  giants' 
tongue,  and  the  brothers  entered  the  hut. 

How  Jake  persuaded  them  to  throw  in  their 
fortunes  with  the  captives  the  circus  man  hardly 
knew  himself.  Perhaps  it  was  due  as  much  as 
anything  to  the  dislike  they  felt  toward  the  king, 
and  the  mean  way  he  had  treated  them. 

"Come,  and  you  will  be  kings  among  the  small 
men  in  our  country,"  invited  Poddington. 


196  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

brothers  looked  at  each  other,  talked  together  in 
low  tones,  and  then  Koku  exclaimed: 

"We  will  come,  and  we  will  help  you  to  escape. 
We  have  spoken,  and  we  will  talk  with  you 
again." 

Then  they  glided  out  into  the  darkness,  while 
from  afar  came  the  sounds  of  revelry  at  the  big 
feast. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

A  SURPRISE  IN  THE  NIGHT 

TOM  and  his  friends  could  scarcely  believe 
their  good  fortune.  It  seemed  incredible  that 
they  should  have  induced  two  of  the  biggest 
giants  to  accompany  them  back,  and,  not  only 
that,  but  that  they  had  the  promise  of  the  strong 
men  to  aid  them. 

"Now  we  must  get  busy,"  declared  Tom,  when 
their  visitors  had  gone.  "We've  got  lots  of  work 
to  do  on  the  aeroplane,  and  we  must  try  out  the 
engine.  Then  we've  got  to  fix  the  side  of  the  hut 
so  it  will  fall  out  when  we're  ready  for  it.  And 
we've  got  to  plan  how  to  meet  the  giants  later  in 
the  forest" 

"Yes,"  agreed  the  circus  man,  "and  we  must 
take  care  that  Hank  Delby  doesn't  spoil  our 
plans." 

Then  ensued  busy  days.  In  the  seclusion  of 
their  hut  the  prisoners  could  work  undisturbed  at 
the  aeroplane,  which  had  been  almost  assembled. 

The  engine  was  installed  and  tried,  and,  when 
the  motor  began  its  thundering  explosions,  there 

197 


198  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

was  consternation  among  the  giants,  who  had 
again  surrounded  the  hut  to  see  that  the  prisoners 
did  not  escape. 

Meanwhile  Delby  seemed  to  be  unusually  active. 
He  could  be  observed  going  in  and  out  from  his 
hut  to  that  of  the  king,  and  he  often  carried  large 
bundles. 

"He's  making  himself  solid  with  his  royal  high- 
ness," declared  Tom.  "Well,  if  all  goes  right, 
we  won't  have  to  worry  much  longer  about  what 
he  does." 

"If  only  those  twin  giants  don't  fail  us,"  put 
in  Ned. 

"Oh,  you  can  depend  on  them,"  said  Mr.  Pod- 
dington.  "These  giants  are  curious  creatures, 
but  once  they  give  their  word  they  stick  to  it." 
He  told  much  about  the  strange  big  men,  confirm- 
ing Tom's  theory  that  favorable  natural  con- 
ditions, for  a  number  of  generations,  had  caused 
ordinary  South  American  natives  to  develope  into 
such  large  specimens. 

Our  friends  were  under  quite  a  nervous  ten- 
sion, for  they  could  not  be  sure  of  what  would 
happen  from  day  to  day.  They  continued  to 
work  on  the  aeroplane,  and  then,  finding  that  it 
would  work  in  the  seclusion  of  the  hut,  they  were 
anxious  for  the  time  to  come  when  they  could 
try  it  in  the  open. 


A  SURPRISE  IN  THE  NIGHT  199 

"Do  you  think  it  will  carry  the  five  of  us  with 
safety?"  asked  the  circus  man,  as  he  gazed 
rather  dubiously  at  the  somewhat  frail-appearing 
affair. 

"Sure!"  exclaimed  Tom.  "We'll  get  away  all 
right  if  I  can  get  enough  of  a  start.  Now  we 
must  see  to  opening  the  side  of  the  hut." 

This  work  had  to  be  done  cautiously,  yet  the 
prisoners  had  a  certain  freedom,  for  the  guards 
were  afraid  to  approach  too  closely. 

The  supporting  and  cross  beams  were  sawed 
through,  for  Tom  had  brought  a  number  of  car- 
penter tools  along  with  him.  Then,  in  the  silence 
of  the  night,  the  two  royal  brothers  brought  other 
beams  that  could  be  put  in  place  temporarily  to 
hold  up  the  roof  when  the  others  were  pulled  out 
to  allow  the  aeroplane  to  rush  forth. 

In  due  time  all  was  in  readiness  for  the  attempt 
to  escape.  The  royal  twins  had  agreed  to  slip  off 
at  a  certain  signal,  and  await  Tom  and  his  party 
in  the  forest  at  the  foot  of  a  very  large  hill, 
that  was  a  landmark  for  miles  around.  The 
giants  could  travel  fast,  but  not  as  fast  as  the 
aeroplane,  so  it  was  planned  that  they  were  to 
have  a  day  and  night's  start.  They  would  take 
along  food,  and  would  arrange  to  have  a  number 
of  Tom's  mules  hidden  in  the  woods,  so  that  our 
hero  and  his  friends  would  have  means  of  trans- 


200  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

portation  back  to  the  coast,  after  they  had  ended 
their  flight  in  the  airship. 

"I  wish  we  had  brought  along  the  larger  one, 
so  we  could  take  the  giants  with  us,"  said  Tom, 
"but  I  guess  they're  strong  enough  to  walk  to 
the  coast.  We'll  take  what  provisions  we  can 
carry,  our  electric  rifles,  and  the  rest  of  the  things 
we'll  leave  here  for  the  king,  though  he  doesn't 
deserve  them." 

"What  do  you  think  Delby  will  do?"  asked 
Ned. 

"Give  it  up.  He's  got  some  plan  though.  I 
only  hope  he  doesn't  get  a  giant.  Then  ours  will 
be  a  greater  attraction." 

Several  days  passed,  and  the  last  of  the  prepa- 
rations had  been  made. 

"The  giant  twins  will  pretend  to  go  off  on  a 
hunting  trip  to-morrow  morning,"  said  the  circus 
man  one  night,  "but  they  won't  come  back. 
They'll  wait  for  us  at  the  big  hill." 

"Then  we  must  escape  the  following  morning," 
decided  Tom.  "Well,  I'm  ready  for  it." 

From  their  hut,  surrounded  as  it  was  still  by 
the  giant  guards,  our  friends  watched  the  royal 
brothers  start  off,  seemingly  on  a  hunting  expedi- 
tion. 

The  day  passed  slowly.  Tom  went  carefully 
the  aeroplane,  to  see  that  it  was  in  shape  for 


A  SURPRISE  IN  THE  NIGH1  2OI 

a  quick  flight,  and  he  looked  to  the  wall  of  the 
hut — the  wall  that  was  to  be  pulled  from  place 
to  afford  egress  for  the  air  craft. 

They  went  to  bed  early  that  night — the  night 
they  hoped  would  be  their  last  in  giant  land.  It 
must  have  been  about  midnight  when  Tom  sud- 
denly awoke.  He  thought  he  heard  a  noise  out- 
side the  hut  and  in  a  moment  he  had  jumped  up. 

"Repel  boarders!"  cried  Tom 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

THE  AIRSHIP  FLIGHT 

FOR  a  few  moments  there  was  confusion  inside 
the  hut  that  was  to  be  the  last  stronghold  of  our 
friends  against  the  approaching  force  of  giants. 
Confusion  and  not  a  little  fear  were  mingled,  for 
Tom's  words  sent  a  chill  to  every  heart.  Then, 
after  the  first  panic,  there  came  a  calmer  feeling 
— a  feeling  that  each  one  would  do  his  duty  in 
the  face  of  danger  and,  if  he  had  to  die,  he  would 
die  fighting. 

"Everyone  take  a  window!"  yelled  Tom. 
"Don't  kill  any  one  if  you  can  help  it.  Shoot  to 
disable,  Rad.  Mr.  Poddington,  there's  an  extra 
shotgun  somewhere  about!  See  if  you  can  find 
it.  We'll  use  the  electric  rifles.  Get  those  Roman 
candles  somebody!" 

Tom  was -like  a  general  giving  orders,  and  once 
his  friends  realized  that  he  was  managing  things 
they  felt  more  confidence.  Ned  grasped  his  elec- 
tric rifle,  as  did  Mr.  Damon,  and  they  stood 
ready  to  use  them. 

"The  strongest  stunning  charge!"  ordered  the 

202 


THE  AIRSHIP  FLIGHT  203 

young  inventor.  "Something  that  will  lay  'em 
out  for  a  good  while.  We'll  teach  'em  a  lesson!" 

Bang! 

That  was  Eradicated  shotgun  going  off.  It 
had  a  double  load  in  it,  and  the  wonder  of  it  was 
that  the  barrel  did  not  burst.  It  sounded  like  a 
small  cannon,  but  it  had  the  good  effect  of  check- 
ing the  first  rush  of  giants,  for  the  electric  rifles 
had  not  yet  been  adjusted,  and  Mr.  Poddington, 
in  the  light  of  the  single  electric  torch  that  had 
been  left  burning,  could  find  neither  the  spare 
shotgun  nor  the  Roman  candles. 

Bang! 

Eradicate  let  the  other  barrel  go,  almost  in  the 
faces  of  the  advancing  giants,  but  over  their 
heads,  for  he  bore  in  mind  Tom's  words  not  to 
injure, 

"That's  the  stuff!"  cried  Tom.  "Come  on 
now,  Ned,  we're  ready  for  'em!" 

But  the  giants  had  retreated,  and  could  be  seen 
standing  in  groups  about  the  hut,  evidently  plan- 
ning what  to  do  next.  Then  from  back  in  the 
village  there  shone  a  glare  of  light. 

"Bless  my  insurance  policy!  It's  a  fire!"  cried 
Mr.  Damon.  "They're  going  to  burn  us  out !" 

"Jove!    If  they  do!"  exclaimed  Ned. 

"We  mustn't  let  'em!"  shouted  Tom.  "Fire, 
NedJ" 


204  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIV1TV 

Together  the  chums  discharged  their  electric 
rifles  at  the  enemy  and  a  number  of  them  fell, 
stunned,  and  were  carried  away  by  their  com- 
panions. 

The  glaring  light  approached  and  now  it  could 
be  seen  that  it  was  caused  by  a  number  of  the  big 
men  carrying  torches  of  some  kind  of  blazing 
wood.  It  did  look  as  though  they  intended  to 
fire  the  prison  hut. 

"Give  'em  another  taste  of  it!"  shouted  Ned, 
and  this  time  the  three  electric  rifles  shot  out  their 
streaks  of  blue  flame,  for  Mr.  Damon  had  his  in 
action.  It  was  still  dark  in  the  hut,  for  to  set 
aglow  more  of  the  electric  torches  meant  that 
Tom  and  his  friends  would  be  exposed  to  view, 
and  would  be  the  targets  for  the  arrows,  or  darts 
from  the  deadly  blow  guns. 

Several  more  of  the  giants  toppled  over,  and 
then  began  a  retreat  to  some  distance,  the  first 
squad  of  fighters  going  to  meet  the  men  who  had 
come  up  with  the  torches.  There  was  no  sign  of 
women  or  children. 

"Shall  we  fire  again?"  asked  Ned. 

"No,"  answered  Tom.  "Save  your  ammuni- 
tion until  they  are  closer,  and  we'll  be  surer  of 
our  marks.  Besides,  if  they  let  us  alone  that's 
all  we  ask.  We  don't  want  to  hurt  'em, 


THE  AIRSHIP  FLIGHT   .  205 

"Bless  my  gizzard!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Damon. 
"I  wonder  why  they  attacked  us,  anyhow?" 

"Maybe  it's  about  the  two  giant  brothers  who 
have  not  come  back,"  suggested  Mr.  Poddington. 
"They  may  imagine  that  we  have  them  captive, 
and  they  want  to  rescue  them." 

"That's  so,"  admitted  Tom.  "Well,  if  they  had 
only  postponed  this  reception  for  a  few  hours 
we'd  have  been  out  of  their  way,  and  they 
wouldn't  have  had  this  trouble,"  and  he  glanced 
at  the  aeroplane,  that  stood  in  the  big  hut,  ready 
for  instant  flight. 

"They're  coming  back!"  suddenly  shouted  Ned, 
and  a  look  from  the  half-opened  windows  showed 
the  giants  again  advancing. 

"I've  got  the  Roman  candles!"  called  Mr.  Pod- 
dington from  a  corner  where  he  had  been  rum- 
maging in  that  box  of  Tom's  which  contained  so 
many  surprises.  "What  shall  I  do  with  'em?" 

"Let  'em  go  right  in  their  faces!"  yelled  Tom. 
"They  won't  do  much  damage,  but  they'll  throw 
a  scare  into  the  big  fellows!  Get  ready,  Ned!" 

"They're  dividing!"  shouted  his  chum. 
"They're  coming  at  us  from  two  sides!" 

"They're  only  trying  to  confuse  us,"  decided 
Tom.  "Fire  at.  the  main  body!"  And  with  that 
he  opened  up  with  his  electric  rifle,  an  example 
followed  by  Mr.  Damon  and  Ned. 


206  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

With  a  whizz,  and  several  sharp  explosions, 
the  circus  man  got  the  Roman  candles  into  action. 
The  glaring  fire  of  them  lighted  up  the  scene 
better  than  did  the  flaming  torches  of  the  giants, 
and  truly  it  was  a  wonderful  sight.  There,  in 
that  lonely  hut,  in  the  midst  of  a  South  American 
jungle,  four  intrepid  white  persons,  and  an  aged 
but  brave  negro,  stood  against  hundreds  of  giants 
• — mighty  men,  who,  had  they  come  to  a  personal 
contact,  any  one  of  which  would  have  been  more 
than  a  match  for  the  combined  strength  of  Tom 
and  his  party.  It  was  a  weird  picture  that  the 
young  inventor  looked  out  upon,  but  his  heart 
did  not  quail. 

Gaint  after  giant  went  down  under  the  fierce 
rain  of  the  electric  bullets,  stunned,  but  not  other- 
wise injured.  There  was  a  shower  of  sparlcs,  and 
a  hail  of  burning  balls  from  the  Roman  candles, 
but  still  the  advance  was  Kept  up.  Eradicate  was 
banging  away  with  his  shotgun. 

"Dis  suah  am  hot  work!"  cried  the  colored 
man,  as  his  hand  came  in  contact  with  the  barrel. 
"Wow!  It's  most  red  hot!"  he  added  with  a  cry 
of  pain. 

"Use  the  other  gun,"  advised  Tom,  never  turn- 
ing his  head  from  the  window  through  which  He 
was  aiming.  "That  one  may  get  choked,  and  ex- 
plode in  here." 


THE  AIRSHIP  FLIGHT 


207 


"All  right,"  answered  Eradicate. 

"Duck!"  yelled  Ned  with  sudden  energy. 
"They're  going  to  fire!"  A  number  of  the  giants 
could  be  seen  fitting  arrows  to  bow  strings,  while 
others  raised  to  their  lips  the  long  hollow  reeds, 
from  which  the  blow  guns  were  made.  It  was 
the  first  time  the  enemy  had  fired  and  doubt- 
less they  had  held  back  because  they  hoped  to 
capture  Tom  and  his  friends  alive.  But  they  did 
not  count  on  such  a  stubborn  resistance. 

Every  one  moved  away  from  the  windows,  and 
not  an  instant  too  soon,  for,  a  moment  later,  a 
shower  of  arrows  and  darts  came  in,  fortunately 
injuring  no  one. 

Then,  above  the  shouting  and  yelling  of  the 
giants,  whose  deep,  bass  voices  had  a  terrorizing 
effect,  there  came  the  din  of  the  tom-toms,  mak* 
ing  a  weird  combination  of  sound. 

"We've  got  'em  on  the  run  again!"  cried  Ned, 
and  so  it  proved,  for  the  larger  body  of  giants, 
who  had  approached  the  hut  from  the  front  and 
two  sides,  were  running  back. 

"Guess  they've  given  it  up,"  exclaimed  Tom. 
"I'm  glad  of  it,  too,  for " 

He  paused  and  glanced  behind  him.  A  tiny 
spurt  of  flame  at  the  base  of  the  rear  wall  of  the 
hut  had  caught  his  eye.  Instantly  the  flame  grew 
larger,  and  a  puff  of  smoke  followed. 


208  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"Fire!"  cried  Ned.    "We're  on  fire!" 

"Bless  my  water  bucket!"  gasped  Mr.  Damoa 
"They've  set  fire  to  the  hut!" 

It  was  but  too  true.  While  Tom  and  the  others 
had  been  standing  off  the  giants  in  front,  a 
smaller  force  had  crept  around  to  the  rear,  and 
set  the  inflamable  side  of  the  hut  ablaze. 

Desperately  Tom  looked  around.  There  was 
no  means  at  hand  of  fighting  fire.  Hardly  a  buc- 
ket of  water  was  in  the  place,  and  the  structure 
was  filled  with  quick-burning  stuff,  while  the  fire- 
works that  remained,  and  the  blasting  powder, 
made  it  doubly  dangerous.  Then  Tom's  eyes 
lighted  on  the  big  aeroplane,  t^eady  for  instant 
service. 

"That's  it!"  he  cried  suddenly.  "It's  our  only 
hope,  and  the  last  one!  Come  on,  everybody! 
Down  with  that  wall!  Pull  on  the  ropes  and  it 
will  come!  We've  got  to  go  now.  In  another 
minute  it  will  be  too  late.  Climb  up,  Mr.  Podding- 
ton,  Mr.  Damon,  Ned,  and  I  will  start  the  ma- 
chine." 

"The  wall  first !    The  wall !"  cried  Ned. 

"Sure,"  answered  Tom.  He  and  his  friends 
grasped  the  two  ropes  that  had  been  attached  to 
the  key-beams  in  the  structure.  It  had  been  so 
arranged  that  when  the  supports  were  pulled  out 
the  wall  would  fall  outward,  making  a  fairly 


THE  AIRSHIP  FLIGHT  209 

smooth  and  level  gangplank,  on  which  the  aero- 
plane could  rush  from  the  hut. 

There  was  a  creaking  of  timbers,  a  straining- 
of  ropes,  and  then,  with  a  crash,  the  wall  fell. 
Instantly  there  was  a  yell  of  surprise  from  the 
giants,  and  a  brighter  glare  from  the  torches,  as 
those  carrying  them  rushed  up  to  see  what  had 
happened.  The  din  of  the  tom-toms  was  well- 
nigh  deafening.  Fortunately  the  enemy  forgot 
to  take  advantage  of  the  opening  and  pour  in  a 
flight  of  arrows  or  darts. 

"Start  the  motor!"  cried  Tom  to  his  chum. 

There  was  a  rattling,  banging  noise,  like  a 
slavo  of  small  arms,  and  the  big  propellers  re- 
volved with  incredible  swiftness.  The  two  white 
men  were  already  in  place,  and  now  Eradicate, 
still  carrying  his  shotgun,  clambered  up. 

"Up  with  you.  Ned !"  yelled  Tom.  "I'm  going 
to  head  her  around  and  make  a  flying  start" 


CHAPTER  XXV 

TOMJS   GIANT — CONCLUSION 

"I  DON'T  see  anything  of  them,  do  you?" 

"No,  and  yet  this  is  the  place  where  they  said 
they'd  meet  us." 

It  was  Tom  who  asked  the  question,  and  Ned 
who  answered  it.  It  was  the  day  after  their  sen- 
sational escape  from  the  giants'  prison,  and  they 
were  circling  about  in  the  aeroplane  which  had 
been  the  means  of  getting  them  away  from  giant 
land.  For  they  were  safely  away  from  that 
strange  and  terrible  place,  and  they  were  now 
seeking  the  two  giant  brothers  who  had  promised 
to  meet  them  at  a  certain  big  hill. 

For  an  hour  that  night  Tom  and  his  friends  had 
traveled  on  the  wings  of  the  Lark  and  when  a 
rising  moon  showed  them  a  level  spot  for  a  land- 
ing, they  had  gone  down  and  made  a  camp.  They 
had  provisions  with  them,  and  plenty  of  blankets4 
and  it  was  so  warm  that  more  shelter  was  not 
necessary. 

The  next  day,  leaving  Mr.  Damon,  Eradicate 
and  the  circus  man  in  the  temporary  camp,  Tom 

210 


TOM'S  GIANT— CONCLUSION  2It 

and  Ned  had  gone  aloft  to  see  if  they  could  piclc 
up  the  giant  twins,  who  were  to  meet  them  and 
have  some  mules  ready  for  the  journey  back  to 
civilization. 

"Well,  we're  in  no  great  hurry,"  went  on  Tom, 
after  vainly  scanning  the  ground  below.  "They; 
may  not  have  traveled  as  fast  as  we  thought  they 
could,  and  the  mules  may  have  given  trouble. 
We'll  stick  around  here  a  day  or  so,  and " 

"Look!"  suddenly  exclaimed  Ned.  "Didn't 
you  see  something  moving  then." 

"Where?" 

"By  that  big  dead  tree." 

Tom  took  a  look  through  a  pair  of  field  glasses, 
while  Ned  steered  the  aeroplane.  Then  the  young 
inventor  cried : 

"It's  all  right.  It's  one  of  the  giants,  but  I 
can't  tell  which  one.  Ned,  I  believe  they're  hiding 
because  they're  afraid  of  us.  They've  never  seen 
an  aeroplane  in  action  before.  I'm  going  down." 

Quickly  and  gracefully  the  Lark  was  volplaned 
to  a  level  place  near  the  dead  tree.  No  one  was 
in  sight,  and  Tom,  after  looking  about,  called: 

"Tola!  Koku!  Where  are  you?  It  is  I,  Torn 
Swift!  We  have  escaped!  Where  are  you? 
Don't  be  afraid!" 

There  was  a  moment's  silence,  and  then  two 
big  forms  rushed  from  the  dense  bushes,  one  of 


212  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

them — Koku — advancing  to  Tom,  and  catching 
him  up  in  what  was  meant  for  a  loving  hug. 

"Oh,  I  say  now,  Koku!"  cried  the  young  in- 
ventor, with  a  laugh.  "I've  got  ribs,  you  know. 
Easy  on  that  squeeze!" 

The  two  giant  twins  laughed  too,  and  they 
were  immensely  pleased  to  see  their  friends  again, 
both  talking  at  once  and  so  fast  that  not  even  the 
circus  man  could  catch  what  they  said. 

"Have  you  got  the  mules?"  asked  Tom,  for  he 
knew  that  much  depended  on  the  animals.  "Is 
everything  all  right?" 

"All  right,"  answered  Koku,  the  talk  being 
conducted  in  the  language  of  the  giants  of  which 
Tom  was  now  fairly  a  master  when  it  was  spoken 
slowly.  Then  the  brothers  explained  that  they 
had  gotten  safely  away,  had  gathered  up  the 
mules,  and  with  a  supply  of  food,  had  hidden 
the  beasts  in  a  nearby  valley.  The  giant  twins 
were  waiting  for  Tom  to  arrive,  but,  though  they 
had  seen  the  areoplanes  in  the  hut  they  had  no 
idea  that  it  could  fly  so  nearly  like  a  bird,  and 
when  they  saw  it  hovering  over  them  they  had 
become  frightened,  and  hidden,  until  Tom's  voice 
had  reassured  them. 

"Well,  get  the  animals,"  advised  Tom,  after 
he  had  told  of  the  fight  of  the  night  before,  and 
the  escape.  "I'll  go  find  the  others  and  we'll 


TOM'S  GIANT— CONCLUSION  213 

start  from  here.    Then  we'll  hike  for  the  United 
States  as  fast  as  we  can." 

Mr.  Damon,  Eradicate  and  the  circus  man  were 
soon  brought  to  the  place  where  the  giant  brothers 
had  made  their  camp,  and  it  was  decided  to  re 
main  there  a  few  days  until  the  aeroplane  could 
be  taken  apart  for  transportation,  for  Tom  had 
no  idea  of  abandoning  it.  Of  course  it  could 
not  be  packed  up  very  well,  as  there  were  no 
boxes  or  bales  at  hand.  But  it  was  made  small 
enough  so  that  the  parts  could  be  slung  across  the 
backs  of  several  mules,  there  being  a  number  of 
the  pack  animals  available,  some  being  the  same 
ones  Tom  had  purchased  after  his  native  escort 
had  deserted  him. 

It  was  the  morning  they  had  decided  to  begin 
their  march  for  the  coast.  Everything  was  in 
readiness,  they  had  some  food,  and  with  the  shot- 
guns and  the  electric  rifles  which  they  had  brought 
along,  they  could  get  game.  All  their  other  things, 
save  a  few  necessaries,  had  been  left  behind. 
Eradicate,  as  he  had  always  done,  rode  his  mule 
up  beside  Tom,  to  look  after  his  young  master. 

Suddenly  Koku,  who  seemed  to  have  become 
very  fond  of  Tom,  strode  forward  and  took  his 
place  on  the  other  side  of  the  mule  ridden  by  the 
young  inventor. 

"Me  stay  by  you,"  he  said  with  a  grin  on  his 


214  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

big  face.  "Me  like  you!  Me  take  care  of  you, 
Tom — be  your  servant.  Him  too  old,"  and  he 
motioned  to  Eradicate. 

"Eh!  What's  dat  yo'  done  said?"  gasped  th* 
colored  man.  "Me  too  old?  Looky  heah,  giant 
man,  I'd  hab  yo'  know  dat  I's  been  in  de  Swift 
fambly  a  good  many  years,  an*  I's  jest  as  spry 
as  I  eber  was.  I  kin  look  after  Massa  Tom  as 
good  as  eber.  Now  yo'  git  back  where  yo'  be- 
longs, giant  man,  an'  doan't  let  me  heah  no  mo' 
ob  dat  foolishness  talk.  Nobody  waits  on  Massa 
Tom  Swift  but  me.  Does  yo'  heah  dat,  giant 
man?" 

"Me  Tom's  man!"  exclaimed  the  big  fellow, 
and  in  fairly  good  English.  Tom  laughed.  He 
had  no  idea  the  giant  had  picked  up  any  words. 

"Go  on  away !"  cried  Eradicate. 

Koku  gave  the  colored  man  one  look,  then, 
with  a  good  natured  grin  on  his  face,  he  reached 
over  one  hand,  calmly  lifted  Eradicate  from  his 
mule  and  set  him  on  the  ground.  Then,  with  a 
push,  he  shoved  the  mule  galloping  ahead,  and 
took  his  place  at  the  side  of  the  young  inventor. 

"Well,  what  do  you  know  about  that?"  gasped 
Ned. 

"Bless  my  coffee  cup!"  cried  Mr.  Damon. 

Eradicate  stood  still  for  a  moment,  gazing  first 
at  his  master  and  then  at  the  big  being  who  had 


TOM'S  GIANT— CONCLUSION  2IJ 

so  ruthlessly  plucked  him  from  the  mule's  back, 
as  easily  as  he  would  have  lifted  a  child.  Then 
Eradicate,  with  a  trace  of  tears  in  his  eyes, 
stretched  forth  his  hands  toward  Tom,  and  turned 
aside.  That  was  too  much  for  our  hero. 

With  one  leap  he  was  off  his  animal,  and  the 
next  minute  he  had  his  arms  around  the  faithful 
old  colored  man. 

"By  Jove,  Rad!"  cried  Tom,  and  his  own  eyes 
were  not  dry.  "I'm  not  going  to  be  deserted  by 
you  in  that  way.  You're  just  the  same  as  ever 
to  me,  giant  or  no  giant,  and  don't  you  forget 
it!"  and  he  patted  the  old  man  on  the  back  af- 
fectionately. 

"Praise  de  Lord  fo'  heahin'  yo*  say  dat,  Massa 
(Tom,"  gasped  Eradicate.  "Praise  de  dear  Lord !" 

And  then,  knowing  that  he  still  held  a  place 
in  his  young  master's  heart,  the  colored  man  was 
content.  And  from  then  on  he  rode  on  one  side 
of  Tom,  while  the  giant,  Koku,  strode  along  on 
the  other.  He  had  established  himself  as  Tom's 
bodyguard  and  even  though  Eradicate  insisted 
on  remaining,  Koku  would  not  go  away. 

"I  guess  I'll  have  to  keep  'em  both,"  said  Tom, 
with  a  grin,  "but  I'm  going  to  change  Koku's 


name." 


"What  are  you  going  to  call  him?"  asked  Ned. 
"Let's  see,  what  month  is  this?" 


2l6  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

"August,"  said  Mr.  Damon. 

"Then  August  is  his  name!"  exclaimed  Tom, 
"Koku  sounds  too  much  like  a  cocoanut  cake. 
Here,  August,  shift  that  package  on  the  white 
mule,"  he  called,  "it's  cutting  her  back,"  and  the 
giant  with  a  pleased  grin,  did  as  he  was  bid. 
And  August  he  was  called  from  then  on. 

But  my  story  is  getting  too  long,  so  I  must 
bring  it  to  a  close.  And  really  there  is  not  much 
to  tell.  The  march  back  to  the  coast  was  full  of 
hardships,  danger  and  difficulties,  but  they  ac- 
complished it.  The  two  giants  seemed  glad  that 
they  had  left  their  own  country  behind  and  they 
were  simple  and  affectionate  beings.  Tom  made 
up  his  mind  he  would  let  the  circus  man  have  one 
and  keep  the  other  for  his  personal  attendant. 

They  traveled  by  day,  and  slept  at  night,  shoot- 
ing game  as  they  needed  it.  Several  times  they 
narrowly  escaped  getting  mixed  up  in  the  native 
conflicts.  Tom  had  one  striking  evidence  of  his 
giant  servant's  usefulness.  One  day  he  was  stalk- 
ing a  small  beast,  like  a  deer,  when,  from  a  tree 
overhead,  a  jaguar  sprang  down  at  him.  But 
Koku — I  beg  his  pardon — August  was  at  hand, 
and,  like  Sampson  of  old,  the  giant  slew  the  beast 
bare-handed,  choking  it  to  death. 

In  due  time  our  friends  reached  a  native  town 
and  the  wonder  caused  by  the  giants  was  no  less 


TOM'S  GIANT— CONCLUSION 

than  the  amusement  of  the  big  men  at  the  things 
they  saw.  They  wondered  more  when  they  got 
to  a  city,  and  saw  more  marvels  of  the  white  man's 
progress. 

Then  Tom  and  his  friends  reached  the  coast, 
and  took  a  steamer  for  New  York.  The  giants 
created  a  great  sensation,  the  more  when  it  was 
known  that  Tom  intended  to  keep  one  for  himself. 
With  this  arrangement  Mr.  Preston  agreed,  for 
he  only  wanted  one  as  an  attraction. 

"Couldn't  have  done  it  better  myself!"  the 
circus  proprietor  said  to  Tom  when  he  heard  the 
story,  and  this  was  high  praise  from  Mr.  Preston. 

"And  you  rescued  old  Jake,  too!  Well,  well! 
Couldn't  have  done  it  better  myself!  I  really 
coudn't!" 

"I  wonder  how  our  old  enemy  Delby  made 
out?"  asked  Mr.  Poddington.  They  heard  later 
that  he  was  driven  from  giant  land,  not  even  be- 
ing allowed  to  take  a  boy  as  a  specimen.  He  had 
worked  on  the  "tip"  Andy  Foger  had  given  Mr. 
Waydell,  but  it  failed.  When  Tom  escaped,  the 
king  confiscated  all  the  things  in  the  hut,  and  he 
was  so  taken  up  with  the  novelties  that  he  paid  no 
more  attention  to  the  circus  agent,  who  had  all 
his  trouble,  plotting  and  scheming  against  Tom 
for  his  pains. 

"A  giant  in  the  house!"  cried  Mrs.  Baggert, 


2i8  TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 

when  Tom  got  home  with  August.  "I  never 
heard  of  such  a  thing  in  all  my  life!  Where  will 
he  sleep?  Not  a  bed  is  big  enough!" 

"We'll  give  him  two  beds  then,"  laughed  Tom. 

And  so  they  did,  and  August  was  immensely 
pleased  with  his  new  life.  He  proved  to  be  very 
useful,  and  readily  adapted  himself  to  civilized 
ways. 

Tola,  the  other  giant,  made  a  big  sensation 
when  exhibited,  and  Mr.  Preston  said  he  was  well 
worth  the  fifteen  thousand  dollars  he  had  cost. 

"Well,  Tom,  what  next?"  asked  Ned  one  day, 
when  they  had  been  home  several  weeks  and  had 
told  their  story  over  and  over  again. 

"No  where!"  exclaimed  Tom.  "I'm  going  to 
take  a  long  rest. " 

But  Tom  Swift  wasn't  that  kind  of  a  young 
man,  and  he  was  soon  active  again.  If  you  care 
to  learn  more  of  his  doings  you  may  do  so  in 
the  next  volume  of  this  series,  to  be  called,  "Tom 
Swift  and  His  Electric  Camera;  Or  Thrilling 
Adventures  While  Taking  Moving  Pictures." 

And  now,  for  a  time,  we  will  take  leave  of  the 
young  inventor  and  his  new  giant  servant,  to  meet 
them  again  a  little  later. 

THE  END 


This  Isn't  AIL' 


Would  you  like  to  know  what 
became  of  the  good  friends  you 
have  made  in  this  book? 

Would  you  like  to  read  other 
stories  continuing  their  adventures 
and  experiences,  or  other  books 
quite  as  entertaining  by  the  same 
author  ? 

On  the  reverse  side  of  the  wrap- 
per which  comes  with  this  book, 
you  will  find  a  wonderful  list  of 
stories  which  you  can  buy  at  the 
same  store  where  you  got  this  book. 

Don't  throw  away  the  Wrappev 

Use  it  as  a  handy  catalog  of  the  books 
you  want  some  day  to  have.  *But  in 
case  you  do  mislay  it,  write  to  tke 
^Publishers  for  a  complete  catalog. 


THE    TOM    SWIFT    SERIES 

By  VICTOR  APPLETON 

Uniform    Style    of   Binding.      Individual    Colored    Wrappers. 
Every   Volume   Complete   in   Itself. 

Every  boy   possesses  some   form  of  inventive   genius. 
Tom  Swift  is  a  bright,  ingenious  boy  and  his  inventions 
and  adventures  make  the  most  interesting  kind  of  reading. 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  MOTOR  CYCLE 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  MOTOR  BOAT 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  AIRSHIP 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  SUBMARINE  BOAT 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  WIRELESS  MESSAGE 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  ELECTRIC  RUNABOUT 
TOM  SWIFT  AMONG  THE  DIAMOND  MAKERS 
TOM  SWIFT  IN  THE  CAVES  OF  ICE 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  SKY  RACER 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  ELECTRIC  RIFLE 
TOM  SWIFT  IN  THE  CITY  OF  GOLD 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  AIR  GLIDER 
TOM  SWIFT  IN  CAPTIVITY 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  WIZARD  CAMERA 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  GREAT  SEARCHLIGHT 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  GIANT  CANNON 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  PHOTO  TELEPHONE 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  AERIAL  WARSHIP 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  BIG  TUNNEL 
TOM  SWIFT  IN  THE  LAND  OF  WONDERS 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  WAR  TANK 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  AIR  SCOUT 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  UNDERSEA  SEARCH 
TOM  SWIFT  AMONG  THE  FIRE  FIGHTERS 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  ELECTRIC  LOCOMOTIVE 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  FLYING  BOAT 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  GREAT  OIL  GUSHER 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  CHEST  OF  SECRETS 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  AIRLINE  EXPRESS 
TOM  SWIFT  CIRCLING  THE  GLOBE 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  TALKING  PICTURES 
TOM  SWIFT  AND  HIS  HOUSE  ON  WHEELS 

GROSSET  &  DUNLAP,        PUBLISHERS,        NEW  YORK 


7 


